'It's looking very grim': Bruce Morcombe's fears for missing toddler William Tyrrell

The father of murdered Queensland teenager Daniel Morcombe has expressed fears that missing toddler William Tyrrell won’t be found alive.

Mr Morcombe has spoken out just days before William’s fourth birthday on June 26. William has not been seen since he vanished from the front yard of his grandmother’s home in Kendall, on NSW’s mid-north coast, on September 12 last year.

“Everyone is hopeful but logic suggests statistically, as the months go by, he is not coming home,” Mr Morcombe told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“I am sure the police are working incredibly hard to find the answers, but with no sightings and no physical evidence, it is looking very grim for sure,” he said.

Mr Morcombe’s 13-year-old son Daniel went missing from a Sunshine Coast highway bus stop on December 7, 2003.

In March last year, Queensland man Brett Peter Cowan was found guilty of the boy’s abduction and murder. He was handed a life sentence and won’t be eligible for parole until 2031.

Cowan will appeal his sentence in the High Court, alleging that he was threatened and coerced into confessing to the murder.

Mr Morcombe urged the Tyrrell family to ‘remain positive’ as the search continues for William.

“That’s all you can do. The police will be working hard, they want to solve it as well,” he said.

Meanwhile, William’s parents, who cannot be named for legal reasons, have released a statement detailing their plans for their missing son’s birthday had he still been with them.

“If William were home, he would be beside himself with excitement and making a long list of presents he would like which would definitely include toys like superhero action figures and dress-ups,” the statement said.

William’s parents are not suspects in his disappearance.

In April, NSW police said they were investigating links to a possible pedophile ring operating in the region and believed he had been snatched in a short window of opportunity.