Police investigating the disappearance of three-year-old Mikaeel Kular have found a body and detained his mother.

The body of a young boy was found in Fife shortly before midnight, police said, and they "strongly believe this to be the body of Mikaeel".

His mother, named locally as Rosdeep Kular, 33, was detained by police. A house, said to belong to a relative of Mikaeel's mother in Kirkcaldy, Fife, is being searched. A police cordon has been set up around a bungalow in Dunvegan Avenue with about a dozen officers posted in the street. An area of woodland to the rear and near the side of the property is being searched.

A second cordon has been strung around the woods, with access to a private road around the back blocked by police. Reporting from outside the property, BBC News correspondent Andrew Anderson said there was a "great deal of police activity" at the housing estate, which is across the Firth of Forth estuary from Edinburgh.

"More police officers have been arriving. There's a small bungalow cordoned off and we understand that it belongs to a relative of Mikaeel Kular's mother," our correspondent added. He said the police appear to be carrying out preliminary work at the moment, and a team of forensic officers are expected to arrive later. A neighbour of the house being searched said Ms Kular and her five children lived at the address until 18 months ago, and that Mikaeel and his twin were born while they lived at the house.

Mikaeel went missing from his home in Edinburgh on Wednesday.The home in Kirkcaldy is about 20 miles away from the property in Edinburgh. It emerged on Friday that Mikaeel had not been seen at nursery since the Christmas break because he had been ill.

Assistant Chief Constable Malcolm Graham, of Police Scotland, told a press conference that Mikaeel's family had been informed of the recovery of a body and the investigation was continuing.

He also thanked rescue teams and the public for their "fantastic response" in helping to search for the missing boy. Police had said Mikaeel disappeared from his home in Ferry Gait Crescent in the Muirhouse area of Edinburgh, at about 21:00 GMT on Wednesday. More than 200 volunteers from the community had joined the emergency services to look for Mikaeel. The body was found in Fife, north of Edinburgh across the Firth of Forth, but police have not disclosed where in the area the discovery was made.

ACC Graham said: "The investigation into the disappearance of Mikaeel Kular has been wide ranging and fast moving. As a result of these inquiries I can confirm that we have recovered the body of a young boy in Fife shortly before midnight. We have informed the family and the investigation continues. A person has been detained in connection with the death. I would like to sincerely thank everyone who has shown such a fantastic response to the incident in terms of assisting the police with searches and in terms of our appeals for information and coming forward to assist with information.

"Without such vital assistance the police cannot do their job assisting those who live and work in our communities. As a result of this development clearly there will now be no requirement for any further help in relation to searches in the Drylaw area."

People have been leaving flowers and soft toys as well as lighting candles outside Mikaeel's home in Edinburgh.

Residents living near the bungalow in Kirkcaldy have been shocked by the latest developments. Olga Park, a retired nurse who lives opposite, said: "I'm just absolutely shocked about what's happened. The fact he's just a three-year-old boy is just terrible. The poor wee thing."

Michael Woods, 53, who lives nearby at Floors Place, said the area behind the heavily wooded area to the rear of the bungalow was popular with dog walkers and families. He said he was surprised to find officers at the end of his street.

"First it was in Edinburgh, then they said Fife, then Kirkcaldy and now it's here almost on my doorstep. It's unsettling," he said. "When I heard it was here I just about jumped off my chair."

Councillor Cammy Day, from Edinburgh City Council, said: "People are devastated this morning. "People have come out in their hundreds across this community and wider, all day yesterday and before, and they would be ready to come out this morning and to hear the news is absolutely devastating. It's a real travesty for this community but of course our thoughts are with the family and individuals involved." He added: "It absolutely shows the community spirit is alive and when people need to help out then they do."

One woman in Edinburgh spoken to by the BBC said: "It is just so sad. It's devastating that this could happen to a young child.

"I'm a mother myself and it's absolutely heartbreaking."

Source:www.bbc.co.uk