Police have launched a murder probe after a young boy’s head was discovered in a backpack, which was left in a pond.

The boy, believed to have been aged between seven and ten, was “covered in bruises” around his neck, police said. The discovery was made in Golyanovsky Pond in Moscow, Russia.

Investigators are still at the scene in the Russian capital while the prosecutor’s office oversees the investigation.

The boy is believed to have died more than two days ago. 

The rest of the boy’s remains have not been found. Divers are searching the pond to look for his body.

Investigators have not yet established the identity of the boy.