Child's body found on beach

Coppet Hall Point is a popular tourist beach

Detectives are investigating at a holiday resort after the body of a two-year-old boy was found submerged in a rockpool on a west Wales tourist beach.

Two people walking along the beach discovered the clothed, dead toddler on rocks at Coppet Hall Point near Tenby, Pembrokeshire, at 1035 BST on Tuesday.

Holidaymakers are being turned away from the car park

A child's buggy was found nearby and a major air and sea search of the resort's coastline was started by Milford Haven Coastguard but was called off about 1600 BST after failing to find new leads.

Dyfed-Powys Police are continuing to treat the death of the boy, of African or Caribbean origin, as suspicious.

They had received no reports of a missing child and owners of the neighbouring Trevayne Caravan and Camping Park said there were no African or Caribbean families staying at their site.

Tourist sighting

But detectives are now following up a report from two teenage holidaymakers who said they saw a gang of seven youths with torches searching at the scene of the discovery at about midnight.

Jordan Singleton, 14, from Sheffield said: "We both thought that it was odd at the time because one of the group had a towel over his head.

"There was enough light to see that one of them was Afro-Caribbean ... [they were] aged between 15 and 20."

His father Patrick McMillan added: "I saw the group sitting down on the beach close to rocks where the child was later found.

"They had what looked like an electric lantern and I heard what I took to be a female voice laughing."

Dyfed-Powys Police confirmed detectives were pursuing inquiries in light of the new information.

'Open mind'

The picturesque sandy stretch near the resort of Saundersfoot is visited by thousands of tourists every year, but was sealed off after the discovery of the body.

Coastguard officers launched the RAF helicopter search fearing the child's parents could be missing in the sea, but it was later halted.

Police spokesman Dai Davies said officers were "keeping an open mind" as to the circumstances leading up to the boy's death and an investigation to discover his identity is ongoing.

He added that he had no idea how long the body may have been lying on the rocks.

A post-mortem examination was carried out Tuesday afternoon by a Home Office pathologist and is expected to show the child drowned.

Anyone with information should contact Tenby Police Station 01834 842303 or Pembrokeshire HQ at 01437 763355.