Police confirm that a Facebook post of a little boy appearing to be without his parents in a petrol station in Bendigo was not William Tyrell.
According to the Bendigo Advertiser an image of a young boy standing in a BP station was widely circulated across social media overnight and was quickly linked to the search for missing toddler William Tyrell.
It has been reported that several people contacted local news outlets and Crime Stoppers to let them know that the boy in the photo could be three-year-old William.
However police Senior Sergeant John Dalton told Port Macquarie News that the Facebook post had been investigated and declared a hoax.
“We don’t have any child at the police station,” said Senior Sergeant Dalton.
He also encouraged people to be cautious with what they believe on social media.
“We may see a lot of this happen in the future – these social media hoaxes,” Senior Sergeant Dalton said.
“We ask people to be mindful of the accuracy of these posts.”
According to the Bendigo Advertiser police later confirmed that they were called out to a BP service station in Epsom on Wednesday to help a three-year-old boy locate his parents.
Shortly after police arrived the boy in question was reunited with his family and while it was unclear how he came to become alone the matter was not under investigation.
An eye witness reportedly told the Bendigo Advertiser that the child may have just wandered out of his home which only appeared to be 150 metres from the service station where he was found.
Police said there was never any connection with the Epsom inquiry and missing boy William Tyrell who disappeared from his grandmother’s home on September 12 on the NSW Mid North Coast.
How many days has William Tyrell been missing?
William Tyrell has been missing for 15 days.
When was William last seen?
William disappeared from his grandmother’s home in Benaroon Drive, Kendall, on the NSW Mid North Coast at 10:30am on September 12.
Police believe the toddler disappeared in a five-minute window while playing alongside his sister in his grandmother’s yard.
What does he look like?
William has been described as being of Caucasian appearance with dark hair and hazel eyes. He was last seen wearing a Spider Man suit.
What is being done to find him?
Police, SES volunteers and members of the public have searched an area of more than 50sq kilometres including bushland and waterways.
Strike Force Rosann has been formed to investigate the disappearance and investigators have engaged in a door-to-door campaign of the Kendall community to gather information.
What have police found?
So far searchers have failed to find any trace of William and last week police said it was unlikely that the toddler would have survived after nine days in the bush.
Was he abducted?
Police are treating the investigation as a search for a missing child, but have not ruled out the possibility of abduction.
Police are reportedly speaking with all known sex offenders in the region.
Police are urging anyone with information about this incident to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or use the Crime Stoppers online reporting page.
