A British toddler is believed to have been abducted by his Russian mother in Spain.
A major police operation is underway to find a three-year-old boy after his British father sounded the alarm by reporting him missing to the police in Marbella.
The boy’s father last heard news about his son on July 4 but only went to the police on August 7. It is understood the boy was last seen in Marbella in July.
Police believe the boy may have been taken to Russia, his mother’s homeland.
A search was underway to find the young boy, named only as Oliver P, and his mother on Thursday evening as detectives confirmed they were treating the case as a “parental abduction”.
Spain’s Ministry of Interior published a picture of Oliver on Thursday, explaining he had been born on November 3 2021.
It described the toddler in an appeal as having blonde hair, being 85 centimetres tall and weighing 15 kilos.
A police spokesman confirmed on Friday that the boy and his father were British and the mother is Russian.
He said: “We are treating this as a parental abduction.
“We believe the mother has left Spain and has taken the boy to her homeland which is Russia.”
A well-placed source said: “The mum and dad are separated and there was a court order preventing the mother from taking this boy out of Spain.
“They are all based here on the Costa del Sol.”
It was not immediately clear if a court had issued an international arrest warrant for the unnamed mum on Friday.
The child’s custody situation was not immediately clear.
An appeal from the Spain Ministry of Interior said: “Oliver disappeared on July 4 2025. His date of birth is November 3 2021.
“He was three when he disappeared.
“The place he disappeared from is Marbella in the province of Malaga.
“He has grey eyes, blonde hair, stands 85 centimetres tall and weighs 15 kilos.”
A spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, asked for more information, said “The investigation is a Spanish National Police investigation.
“You need to contact them.”
