The body of an eight-year-old boy who had been missing for nearly two weeks has been found in his father's partner's car, police in Spain have said.

Gabriel Cruz was last seen alive in the small southeastern village of Las Hortichuelas on 27 February.

Hundreds of volunteers joined the search and his parents, Angel Cruz and Patricia Ramirez, who are separated, gave a series of emotional interviews.

Angel Cruz's partner, Ana Julia Quezada, was a regular presence during days of searching through local countryside.

Image: Gabriel's body was found in his father's partner's car. Pic: @ PCivilElEjido

People in Spain are now calling for the death penalty to be reinstated following the discovery of the little boy's remains.


Spain's Interior Minister Juan Ignacio Zoido announced that they had been found in Ms Quezada's car on Sunday.

Later in the evening, a mob of protesters gathered at the police station in Almeria, where Ms Quezada is being held, clapping their hands and shouting "death penalty".

There were also calls for capital punishment on social media, with others calling for Ms Quezada to be given life in prison.

However, Gabriel's mother says she does not want to hear "words of hate" and that justice must "run its course".

She was in tears as she spoke to reporters, wearing a T-shirt with Gabriel's smiling face on it.

Image: Hundreds of people helped search for Gabriel. Pic: @ PCivilElEjido

Spain is currently debating whether to abolish the punishment of imprisonment without parole, or to widen it to include other offences. It was re-introduced in 2015 for rare cases including serious murders.

Several petitions have appeared online. One of them - signed by more than 220,000 people - requests Ms Quezada's extradition to her native Dominican Republic, so she will not enjoy "the comfort of Spanish jails".

But Gabriel's mother told Spanish radio: "Let justice run its course. What remains now is faith and all the good acts that took place and that brought out the best in people.

"It can't end with the image of this woman or with words of hate."

Her words were backed by famous Spanish film director JA Bayona, who tweeted: "What an extraordinary woman setting the example!

"No one can take another human being's life, and especially not the state.

"That must be an example for all. RIP little Gabriel."