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An eight-year-old Ivorian child was found hidden in a suitcase that was smuggled across the border into Spanish territory.

(Screenshot from Telegraph)

Spanish officials say an eight-year-old boy was smuggled into Spain from Morocco inside a suitcase.

BBC reports the boy was discovered inside a suitcase being carried by a 19-year-old woman into Ceuta, a Spanish enclave next to Morocco. A spokesman for the Guardia Civil says police found the boy in a "terrible state."

When guards had the woman open the suitcase, the boy immediately said, "My name is Abou," the Telegraph says.

The woman seemed suspicious at the enclave as she seemed uncertain on her approach to the pedestrian checkpoint, the Telegraph continues to report. This caused the guards to order her to place the suitcase on the scanner. The operator then saw the outline of a human inside.

The woman was arrested on the scene, as was the boy's father when he tried to cross the border a few hours later, Yahoo! News says. The father is also Ivorian and lives in Spain's Canary Islands.

"It could have ended in tragedy," a civil guard tells the Telegraph.

The boy was checked by medical personnel and is now in the custody of child-protection authorities in Ceuta.