A tragedy unfolded as a five-year-old autistic boy, João Gabriel Ferreira dos Santos, was discovered lifeless in a sewage tank after informing his mother that he needed to use the restroom in Brazil. João went missing on a Sunday morning, prompting a frantic search by his parents and later involving hundreds of volunteers, dogs, drones, and a helicopter scouring through three square kilometers of dense terrain.

Living in a rural area where his parents worked as caretakers, João, a non-verbal child requiring level-two support for autism, met a heartbreaking fate when his body was located after three days in a water-filled bio-digester pool just 70 meters away from his home. Firefighters, who drained the pool used for decomposing organic waste, made the grim discovery.

The tragic incident occurred due to a tear in the cover of the bio-digester, causing a hazardous pool to form where João was found. Despite being fenced, a gap existed that allowed the boy to access the dangerous area. The authorities, including Governor Ratinho Junior, expressed condolences to the family, with investigations underway by the civil police and forensic teams, who currently view the incident as a probable accident rather than a criminal act.