Rescuers have recovered the body of a toddler who fell down a 360-foot (110-meter) well almost two weeks ago, according to local officials in Andalusia, southern Spain.
Two-year-old Julen Roselló had been in the countryside with his family near the village of Totalán in the southern province of Málaga on January 13 when he stumbled into the well, which is 9 inches in diameter.
Saturday’s grim discovery ended a frantic search for the boy, and came just over a week after rescuers found “biological traces” of him inside the well.
“Unfortunately at 1.25 am this morning, the rescue teams have accessed the point of the well where Julen was sought and have located the lifeless body of the child. My condolences and condolences to the family. R.I.P.,” Alfonso Rodríguez Gómez de Celis, a delegate of the government of Spain in Andalusia, tweeted.
The well was bored in December during efforts to find groundwater but was not covered or otherwise secured, AFP reports.
Rescuers had lowered a micro robot with cameras over 260 feet into the hole but were unable to locate the boy.
The team, which included mining rescuers from the northern region of Asturias, also dug horizontal and vertical tunnels to intersect at the spot where Julen was believed to have fallen.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez tweeted Saturday that “Spain joins the infinite sadness of Julen’s family. We have closely followed each step to get to him. We will always appreciate the tireless effort of those who searched for him during all these days. My support and love to his parents and loved ones.”
CNN’s Jennifer Hauser contributed to this report.