Life at stake for boy with tumour taken from hospital by parents

The battery on the feeding system of a five-year-old boy with a brain tumour, who was taken from hospital by his parents without consent is "now likely to have expired," police said.

Ashya King’s family took him from Southampton General Hospital at around 2pm on Thursday and travelled on a ferry to France some two hours later.

Hampshire Constabulary were told by the hospital that the youngster was missing at 8.35pm that night — more than six hours after he was taken by his parents, Jehovah’s Witnesses Brett King, 51, and Naghemeh King, 45.

Assistant chief constable Chris Shead said last night: “Within the last hour, we have been told by medical experts that the battery life on the machine that administers his food is now likely to have expired.

“We don’t know whether the King family have any spares, the knowledge, or any way of recharging the battery. If they don’t, without properly administered food, Ashya’s condition will deteriorate very quickly.”

Mr Shead added: “With each hour that passes our concern for him grows.”

Earlier Mr Shead said Ashya’s health would “deteriorate rapidly’ if he was not found. The youngster is in a wheelchair and is fed through a tube.

He has undergone “extensive surgery” and his last operation was just seven days ago. “Time is running out for this little boy. We need to find him and we need to find him urgently,” Mr Shead told a press conference.

Last night he warned that the family could have reached other countries beyond France by now.

“There have been widespread media alerts across Europe, focusing on countries where the Kings had a known association; and in particular we continue to work closely with French authorities.

“The last positive information we had placed them in France, but by now we cannot be certain they have not moved on. Our inquiries are totally focused on establishing where they are now. There is still time to find Ashya and make sure he gets the medical help he urgently needs, but we need the public’s help to do this.”

Legal experts said that it was “unlikely” that the Kings had committed an offence by taking Ashya out of hospital.