The active search is over - the police have not yet given up hope of finding little Arian from Bremervörde in Lower Saxony somewhere. The officers of the "Arian Investigation Team" are continuing to evaluate every lead that could clarify the whereabouts of the six-year-old.

Since the autistic boy's disappearance a good week ago, the police tip line has received "well over 1,000 calls," a spokeswoman for the Rotenburg police station said on Tuesday in response to a stern query. There have been almost 200 online references to this – and the number continues to grow. "The understanding and willingness to help are remarkable."

The sheer volume of information forces the police to prioritize. "Clear information with investigative leads" is "forwarded immediately" and "checked promptly," explains the spokeswoman. This includes, among other things, information about images from surveillance cameras or footprints. Information about specific locations where searches could be carried out has also been checked.

In addition, suggestions, for example from relatives of autistic people, as well as offers to help with the search, were forwarded and taken into account in the operations.

As is usual in missing person cases, according to the police, people with supposedly special abilities, for example "clairvoyants", also contacted the officers. “Here we can only check the references to certain places that have been specifically named,” continued the spokeswoman for the responsible police station.

The little boy's unknown fate is affecting people across the country. “The willingness of citizens to help or to provide advice and support is enormous,” reports the police. Alone: ​​Nobody knows where Arian is. So the emergency services only have hope: "Maybe there will be a miracle in the end," said one of them on Wednesday.

The police tip line remains open during the day on (04761) 7489135. In urgent cases, the Bremervörde police station can be reached at (04761/9974890).

Sources: Rotenburg police station, DPA news agency