Parents’ heartbreak as body of missing British backpacker Amelia Bambridge, 21, is found at sea more than 30 miles from where she disappeared in Cambodia
- Police said they had found Amelia Bambridge’s body a week after she vanished
- The 21-year-old had last been seen at a beach party on the island of Koh Rong
- More than 100 military and police officers had been searching for the Briton
The body of British backpacker Amelia Bambridge has been found at sea more than 30 miles from where she disappeared, Cambodian police have announced.
Miss Bambridge’s body was found floating in waters near the Thai border today, eight days after she vanished from the island of Koh Rong.
The 21-year-old is feared to have drowned and her body is now being taken to the Cambodian mainland for an autopsy.
Police identified her by a tattoo on her body and by the clothes she was wearing when she was last seen.
The body of British backpacker Amelia Bambridge (pictured) has been found at sea more than 30 miles from where she disappeared
Search and rescue teams retrive the body of missing British backpacker Amelia Bambridge today after it was discovered near the Thai border
Vigil: Last night some of Amelia Bambridge’s relatives who are still in the UK held a vigil for her near her home in Worthing, West Sussex
A map showing where Amelia Bambridge was last seen on October 23 and where her body was found floating in the sea on Thursday
‘We found the body of the missing British woman,’ said Chuon Narin, police chief of Preah Sihanouk province.
Miss Bambridge’s family was with the authorities when rescuers found the body floating among rocks, police said.
The body was found near another island, Koh Chhlam, close to Cambodia’s border with Thailand.
Early indications pointed to drowning as the cause of death, the police chief said today.
‘The body is being transported to a marina from the Thai border. It will take two hours to reach the mainland,’ he said.
”According to the people who are transporting her body, it’s almost 100 percent her, looking at her body’s markings, including tattoo.’
A full autopsy will take place when the body is brought ashore to Sihanoukville, where the police operation has been based.
Miss Bambridge had not been seen since attending a beach party on the island of Koh Rong last Wednesday.
Amelia’s father Phil Bambridge (left) was among the relatives who scrambled to the island to help with the investigation and have been shuttling between Sihanoukville and Koh Rong
Recovery: A search and rescue team retrieves the British backpacker’s body, which will be taken back to the Cambodian mainland today for an autopsy
A vigil for Amelia Bambridge is held at St Michael’s Catholic Church in Worthing, West Sussex last night, a week after the 21-year-old went missing
A woman speaks at the vigil where members of the local community were invited to light a candle for the British backpacker
More than 100 army, navy and police personnel as well as volunteers and relatives had been combing the waters and dense jungle territory nearby
Staff at the private beach venue found her purple rucksack, containing her purse, phone and bank cards, the morning after the beach party.
Her family were alerted to her disappearance when she did not check out of the Nest Beach Club hostel that day.
More than 100 army, navy and police personnel as well as volunteers and relatives had been combing the waters and dense jungle territory nearby.
Divers searched the waters and others combed the jungle, but for days nothing substantive was found.
Amelia’s family members scrambled to the island to help with the investigation and have been shuttling between Sihanoukville and Koh Rong.
Last night some of her relatives who are still in the UK held a vigil for her near her home in Worthing, West Sussex.
Local MP Tim Loughton said today: ‘Devastated to hear the terribly sad news about Amelia Bambridge this morning.
‘The thoughts and prayers of everyone in Worthing are with her family and friends.’
Members of the Cambodian rescue team are seen on Koh Rong island today during the search for Amelia Bambridge which ended with the discovery of her body on Thursday
Rescue operation: Emergency workers sit around a table and look at a map today during the search for Amelia Bambridge whose body has been found at sea
Patrol: A Cambodian police officer searches dense vegetation for Amelia Bambridge today
The crew of a Cambodian navy patrol boat search for missing British national Amelia Bambridge on the shore of Koh Rong island last night
Amelia (pictured left alongside sister Georgie, right) had been dreaming of the trip for years and had sent messages home gushing about her experiences so far
After cracking the password to her Instagram account they have posted regular updates to urge other travellers on the island to provide information.
The mystery deepened after police held six men for questioning but they were found not to be involved and released.
Police had received a note from some Western visitors saying the men had acted badly toward foreign tourists in the past, especially women.
Authorities had admitted earlier this week that they were ‘looking for a body’ after no trace of Amelia was found.
The police chief said on Tuesday that the search had been expanded to nearby islands and further offshore in the Gulf of Thailand.
‘We have decided the search mission will not be ended until we find her alive, or her body if she has died,’ he said.
Amelia, who saved for the trip for two years by working at Lloyds bank, set off on September 27 and flew first to Vietnam.
During a phone call with her younger sister Georgie on the day she vanished, Miss Bambridge said her first solo trip was ‘doing so much for her confidence’ and she was having ‘the best time ever’.
Koh Rong, a small island some 130 miles from the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, is popular with backpackers for its crystal waters and sandy coves.
source:dailymail