Authorities found the body of a missing four-year-old on the shores of Spectacle Island in Boston Harbor on Monday afternoon, ending a desperate search involving multiple law enforcement agencies.
Mohamed Fofana, from South Boston, was reported missing on Sunday, May 14, Mother’s Day.
Extensive search operations involved divers examining the area offshore from Castle Island’s seawall, helicopters patrolling the coastline from Deer Island to Hull, and a Boston firefighter drone surveying the shoreline. Police also continued searching the ground in and around Castle Island. Detectives analyzed surveillance footage to determine the boy’s whereabouts after leaving the playground.
State Police spokesperson Dave Procopio confirmed that a Marine unit ferried troopers and the State Police Detective Unit for Suffolk County to Spectacle Island, where they identified the body as Fofana. State Police Crime Scene Services also arrived at the scene to document the recovery.
Fofana disappeared around 7 pm on Sunday while playing at a playground on Castle Island with his older sister and grandfather, Soleymane Fofana. Soleymane called 911 when he could not find his grandson, who had wandered off near the water. Search operations began shortly before 9:30 pm, involving helicopters and patrol teams covering land and sea. The search continued throughout the night and resumed on Monday morning.
Spectacle Island is across the water from Castle Island, over a mile away, and is one of several beaches overlooking Boston Harbor.
Mohamed’s mother, Matenjay Fofana, and his grandfather released two images of the child on Monday morning and appealed to the community for help finding him. They revealed that Mohamed was on the autism spectrum, suffered from sickle cell disease, and could not talk.
Fofana was a pre-K student at Lee K-8 School in Dorchester.
Massachusetts State Police detectives are currently investigating the little boy’s death.
