Murder squad arrest man over baby left on tip

A man was arrested yesterday in connection with the death of a baby boy in Cumbria more than a decade ago.The move follows a renewed police appeal for information in December, the 10th anniversary of the body's discovery.

A man was arrested yesterday in connection with the death of a baby boy in Cumbria more than a decade ago.The move follows a renewed police appeal for information in December, the 10th anniversary of the body's discovery.

The mutilated and badly burned body of the boy was found by a council workman at a tip in Millom, Cumbria, on 1 December, 1989. An inquest found that he was between 12 and 18 months old but could not establish a cause of death.

Despite checks on the 6,000 Cumbrian children born around the same time and nationwide inquiries, no information on his identity emerged.

In December, an anonymous caller contacted police with information. A man from the Egremont area near Whitehaven, Cumbria, believed to be in his fifties, was arrested after several hours' questioning yesterday. Police also conducted door-to-door inquiries in the Whitehaven area.

A police spokesman said: "We have kept the inquiry open since [the discovery of the body], with around 50 officers working on the case over the years. The people of Millom were very shocked by it and had the baby buried in the local church at their expense.

"We relaunched the inquiry on its 10th anniversary and received more information. It would be helpful to speak to an anonymous caller who rang."

Millom town council lays a wreath at the baby's grave every Christmas and local children still place their old teddy bears next to the headstone in the parish church. The inscription reads simply: "A small boy child of Jesus Christ lies here, aged 18 months."

The mayor of Millom, Christine Lovell, said: "The worst thing was that no one had reported him missing."