Police wrapping up missing child probe

Police have wrapped up their investigation into the disappearance of an eight-month-old baby boy in Nakhon Pathom, whose body has not been found despite a long search.

Although the body of Nong Tor has not been recovered, his mother's statements to investigators, forensic evidence and witness accounts are deemed sufficient to convince the court the boy is almost certainly dead, Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, deputy national police chief, said on Wednesday.

Among the evidence is a record of the mother's phone signals, which implicate her in his death, he said. 

Police have charged the 17-year-old mother with negligence causing death, an offence that carries a maximum prison term of 10 years and a fine of up to 200,000 baht. 

The boy first went missing on Feb 5. If he went missing near the river bank that was the focus of the search, his body may have been preyed on by reptiles in the area, Pol Gen Surachate added.

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