TOULOUSE, Sept 18 — A man has been charged in France with murder after his son aged seven was found in the bath of the family apartment, the body covered in bruises and partially frozen, prosecutors said yesterday.

The boy’s body was found on Thursday in the southern city of Perpignan. The father, aged 28, has been placed in detention ahead of trial, regional prosecutor Jean-David Cavaille told AFP.

The father has also been charged with the attempted murder of his two daughters, aged three and four. Meanwhile the boy’s uncle and grandmother, aged 33 and 61 and both from the father’s side, have been charged with failure to report a crime.

They have not been remanded in custody but placed under judicial control.

As for the health of the two young girls, who have both been hospitalised, medical examinations have "revealed multiple scars on the body and face,” the prosecutor said.

The autopsy of the boy is due to take place today. The mother and her mother are both being given psychological support, the prosecutor said. The circumstances of the boy’s killing have yet to be made clear. — AFP