Children were killed in Bournemouth beach tragedy after 'pleasure boat caused ... trends now
A 12-year-old girl and 17-year-old boy who died at Bournemouth beach were 'forced out to sea' after a passing pleasure boat created a riptide, sources have claimed.
Sunnah Khan and Joe Abbess drowned after being pulled under the water at the south coast resort on Wednesday, May 31, while eight other beachgoers got into difficulty in the water.
It has now been claimed the pair were among a number of people stood on a sandbar when they were tipped off by the wash of the 78ft Dorset Belle as it came to dock at the pier.
The ship has since been impounded by police who are investigating the incident, and a man was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter but has since been released under investigation.
On Monday inquests into the deaths of Sunnah and Joe were opened, and details given in court revealed the pair had died from drowning with no traumatic injuries.
Sunnah Khan, 12, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, died after being pulled under the water near Bournemouth Pier
Police have impounded a 78ft pleasure boat, the Dorset Belle (pictured), following the tragedy, but have said they are keeping an open mind about what happened
Dorset Police has previously said it is keeping an open mind as it probes what happened, with officers looking into the potential role played by the weather and conditions in the water at the time.
However, insiders have suggested the 'sudden riptide' which was said to have contributed to their deaths in court on Monday could have been caused by the Dorset Belle.
A source told The Sun: 'They were on a sandbar to the east of the pier when the Dorset Belle came moored alongside the pier.
'It created a riptide which deluged everyone on the sandbar and effectively forced them further out to sea.'
MailOnline has contacted Dorset Police for comment about this claim.
The lack of answers surrounding what happened has frustrated loved ones of Sunnah and Joe.
Sunnah's mother, Stephanie Williams, had previously hit out at the police, saying: 'It's just really difficult to accept. Somebody has potentially caused Sunnah to be taken away from us.
'The police have only told us what they said in a statement. The cause of death was drowning, there were no other injuries.
'We don't actually know how it came about. I don't understand how somebody can be released on bail for double manslaughter. How does that work?'
Family and friends of the pair paid tribute to them, with Sunnah being described as an 'angel' by heartbroken relatives last week.
Joe, who was a trainee chef and harboured dreams of running his own restaurant in the future, was described by his college as an 'exceptional student', while Southampton FC -where he had worked in hospitality - also paid tribute to him.
The teenage boy who died while in the water off Bournemouth beach was named on Sunday as Joe Abbess
On Monday beachgoer Trevor Pinto has revealed how he saw the riptide form just seconds before Sunnah and Joe went under.
He described how he was walking towards Bournemouth Pier with his son when they heard the lifeguards on the beach make an announcement about a riptide.
Mr Pinto looked out to sea and spotted the swirling current about 200 metres away and headed towards the pier at just after 4pm on May 31.
They walked to the end of the pier and saw lifeguards and jet skis recover the bodies of Sunnah and Joe from the water.
He said: 'We were walking on the pier just after 4pm and heard an announcement from the lifeguards about a riptide.
'We could see the riptide about 200 metres away. It was a different colour than the rest of the sea. It was on the east side of the pier and was coming towards the shore.
'After that we walked to the end of the pier to the Key West restaurant. I took a photograph of my son there at 4.10pm.
'We noticed a lifeguard on a jet ski looking for people under the pier and that is when we realised something was wrong. They pulled the first person from the water and started giving them CPR on the beach.
'This was about 60 metres away from where we were but there were more lifeguards looking underneath pier.
'Some other people started shouting that they saw a body. We saw that person was wearing black T-shirt or something. That was about 20 or 30 metres away from the pier. They were also given CPR.
'People were taking videos and filming and after that they started pushing people away.
'The pier has two tiers to it and the only person I saw on the pier was a guy fishing. There were no jet skis.'
Asked about the presence of the Dorset Belle pleasure craft, Mr Pinto said he recalled seeing it as he walked onto the pier at about 4pm but it had left by the time he reached the end of the pier at 4.10pm.
An inquest heard on Monday that Sunnah and Joe died from drowning following the riptide.
Sunnah's mother Stephanie Williams, 32, says she has received little clarity over her death
An air ambulance takes off from Bournemouth beach after two children died on Wednesday, May 31
12-year-old Sunnah Khan, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Rachael Griffin, senior coroner for Dorset, added: 'I understand there is an ongoing police investigation. Despite that, I have already submitted the appropriate paperwork and released both Joe's and
