Mother fears missing son is dead

The boys went missing after saying they were going out to play

The mother of a boy who went missing from Solihull nine years ago says she believes her son could now be dead.

David Spencer, who was 13-years-old, and Patrick Warren, then 11, disappeared from their homes in Chelmsley Wood on Boxing Day 1996.

Police have said they believe they are still alive.

David Spencer's mother, Christine O'Toole, told BBC WM that she thinks if her son was alive, he would have been in touch by now.

She said: "There's a possibility he might be dead because reaching the age of 18 no one can touch him, so why didn't he get in touch with me?

"He's now 21 and come the age of 18 social services or anybody else couldn't touch him."

The best friends went missing after saying they were going out to play and later became the focus of a national missing persons campaign when their faces were printed on milk cartons.