Woman arrested over boy's torso found in Thames

A woman of West African origin was arrested in Glasgow yesterday in connection with the murder of a young boy whose torso was found in the Thames in London.

The woman, who is said to be in her 30s, was arrested at her home in Scotland and taken to a police station in south London for interview.

Officers from the Strathclyde and Metropolitan forces searched her house and removed items. The woman is described as married but living alone. Her arrest is the first in connection with the inquiry.

The child's torso, clad only in a pair of orange shorts, was spotted floating in the Thames near Tower Bridge on 21 September last year. It had been in the water for up to 10 days. The boy, who has not yet been identified, was named Adam by police officers working on the inquiry.

Police have described the case as unprecedented. The boy ­ aged between four and seven ­ had been beheaded and his legs severed above the knee. His arms had been cut off and his atlas bone ­ the vertebra that supports the skull ­ had also been removed.

Police have followed the theory that he might been the victim of a ritual muti killing, in which body parts are taken for their supposed magical powers. Scotland Yard consulted a specialist South African police unit that investigates occult crimes.

Experts on African religion consulted by Scotland Yard believe Adam may have been sacrificed to one of 400 orisha, or ancestor gods, of the Yoruba, Nigeria's second largest ethnic group. Oshun, a river goddess, is associated with orange, the colour of the shorts put on Adam's body after he was killed. The body was kept for another day before being dumped.

Nelson Mandela made a worldwide appeal in April to Africans for help in solving the gruesome killing of the boy, and a reward of £50,000 has been offered for information.