Father's body recovered from sea

The 50-year-old Londoner's body was discovered two days after his two-year-old son Arun was found in the sea.

The pair went missing after taking a dinghy out off the coast of Littlehampton in West Sussex on Sunday evening. Mr Watkins and his son were reported missing on Sunday night.

A Sussex Police spokesman said: "The body recovered from the sea off Littlehampton on Tuesday afternoon has been identified as 50-year-old Alan James Watkins of Southwark in south-east London."

Police said he and his son had gone on a pre-arranged trip to Littlehampton. His body was spotted 400 metres offshore by a kite surfer at 3.45pm on Tuesday and brought to shore by the RNLI Inshore Lifeboat.

Arun's body was found floating in the water by two men in a yacht at 6.50pm on Sunday. He was brought to shore and transferred to Worthing Hospital where he was pronounced dead. The empty dinghy was spotted 10 minutes earlier.

Arun's mother has paid tribute to the son who she said was "her reason to live".

Sheena Basnayake, 35, a nurse, said: "He was my raison d'etre, my very reason to live, and now I need time to learn to understand, remember, and be left to grieve in peace. Arun was a beautiful, adventurous, and loving little boy, adored and treasured by his father and I.

"He enjoyed nothing more than running about in the fresh air and playing with his friends. He loved the water, and would always be excited if he was going on an adventure with his Dad; no less so on Sunday. He made an unforgettable impact on me, my life and everyone that met him. I cannot find words to describe the impact of his loss, and I would appreciate it if very much if I were not asked to try."

A Sussex Police spokesman said: "Police enquiries are continuing into the unexplained deaths of both Arun and his father."