The grave of a five-month-old baby, sealed off by a police forensic team, is believed to have been dug up by foxes.

Police are still sealing off and guarding part of the Battersea New Cemetery in Morden and are expected to remain in place until the end of today.

Officers have contacted wildlife experts in a bid to confirm their belief that foxes were responsible for the incident.

Detectives were first summoned at midday on Tuesday to reports that a grave had been “disturbed,” police have said.

Police would not comment on whether the body had been taken but said an investigation was ongoing.

The baby’s next of kin have been informed but police have not confirmed the family’s identity or when the body was buried.

John Hartley of Lower Morden Lane said a large number of police and blue flashing lights could be still seen at the grave at 11pm on Tuesday evening.

He said: “They were still out there when I walked past there at 8.20am the next morning.

"My initial thought was that someone had been killed, but it’s an even more disgusting thought to think a body might have been exhumed.”

A member of staff at the North East Surrey Crematorium, based on the same site, claimed police would only say that an investigation was ongoing.

A spokesman for Wandsworth Council, owners of the Battersea New Cemetery, said: “We are aware of the police activity and will assist in any way we can.”

Police are in contact with the coroner’s office over the incident.

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