Gino’s step found in search for missing boy

One of Gino’s sisters confirmed this. There is still no trace of the boy himself.

The scooter was located near the swimming pool In de Bende in Landgraaf. The area has been cordoned off. The police are mainly looking for the boy in the vicinity of the swimming center. The search continues all night. Police officers in white suits have now started a technical investigation on the spot.

The swimming pool in Landgraaf is located about five kilometers from the playground on Hertogenlaan and Zonstraat in Kerkrade. There the child was last seen.

without a trace

Gino has been missing since Wednesday evening. The boy actually lives in Maastricht, but is staying with his 32-year-old sister in Kerkrade because his mother is ill. He was supposed to be back from football on Wednesday at 7.30 pm, but has since gone missing.

Also read: Missing Gino (9) has only been living with his sister for one week: who is who in this Kerkraads children’s drama?

Gino, who was last seen with his scooter in Kerkrade on Wednesday evening, is in acute danger, according to the police. “A nine-year-old boy going missing on the second night, out on the street, is in imminent danger.” That said Danny Frijters, head of the Limburg police investigation, during a press conference in Maastricht. Frijters calls on the public to provide information. “However small, it can help.”

The police issued an Amber Alert earlier Thursday afternoon due to the missing 9-year-old Gino. He was last seen on Wednesday evening between 7.30 pm and 8.30 pm in a playground on Hertogenlaan and Zonstraat in Kerkrade. The police were alerted around midnight that Gino had not yet returned home.

Also read: Limburg police: ‘Acute danger for Gino, missing 9-year-old boy goes into second night’

The police raised the alarm because no explanation can be found for the disappearance of the boy. An appeal was placed via Burgernet to look out for Gino. According to his sister, the boy had a black scooter with red handles.

Woman knows for sure: ‘I’ve seen Gino’

A woman who lives in the Kerkrade neighborhood where the missing Gino disappeared says she saw the child on Thursday morning. “I’m very sure,” says Lenie, an elderly lady behind a walker. “I still got the photo. It was him, here on the Deken Deutzlaan. And my home care worker saw it too. She was on her way to me. She even asked him if he shouldn’t be at school. He visibly startled. He then took off on his scooter, he was also wearing his cap. I called the police right after I saw Gino. They have visited me twice since then. Shortly after my report, the entire square was also full of police. I’m not just saying this because I know it means he was at least unharmed today.”

Police declined to comment on the specific report. “But we’re going to take every tip now. We are keeping all options open at the moment.”

Police looking for man

The police say they are looking for an adult man who was playing football on the playing field where the boy was said to have been at the time of Gino’s disappearance. The man is wanted as a witness, a police spokeswoman emphasized. In addition to the man, there were also three children playing football on the playing field on Hertogenlaan and Zonstraat in Kerkrade on Wednesday evening. The police have already spoken to them, but not yet with the man. He is urged to come forward, police said.

The boy is in life-threatening condition, police said.

Also read: Sisters Kelly and Naomi emotional about Gino’s disappearance (9): ‘He comes here more often and therefore knows the way’

Photo: AV Limburg

sniffer dogs

“We searched for a large part of the night with a drone team and sniffer dogs. A search was made in all places where he could logically be. We are still working in the area with a drone. But we are also considering the next steps,” said police spokesman Wim Coenen.

Gino has blond hair, is 130 centimeters tall and wears a red coat with black sleeves. He also wears a red Nike cap, gray jeans and green shoes with a white sole. Coenen: „All scenarios are on the table for us. But this seems quite alarming.”

The police have now also informed the German police of the search.

Photo: Bas Quaedvlieg