River Tay body: Image of personal effects released

DETECTIVES trying to identify a man, whose barefoot body was recovered from the River Tay at Broughty Ferry, today released a photograph of his personal effects in the hope of solving the mystery.

Picture: Hemedia

The man’s body was recovered from the Tay on Friday, a short distance from the shoreline between Broughty Castle and the Broughty Ferry Lifeboat Station.

He was aged between 40 and 50, about 6ft tall, stocky, with brown unkempt hair with a receding hairline and thick greying stubble. He was wearing a red waterproof jacket, a beige coloured long sleeve shirt, a woollen snood around his neck, black fingerless gloves and green trousers. But he was not wearing any boots or shoes.

He was found with two orange ear plugs, and a set of four gold or brass keys on a metal chain in his left trouser pocket. His possessions also included a red plastic hair comb, a small white pen knife with a blade and corkscrew, a Seiko silver metal wrist watch and a pair of large black plastic sunglasses.

A spokesman for Police Scotland said: “It is hoped that someone will recognise the items as belonging to someone they know and in so doing assist the police in identifying the deceased. The photo show a watch, sunglasses, a comb and a penknife that were found in the man’s possession.”

He continued: “Efforts to establish his identity have so far proved unsuccessful, with officers carrying out enquiries locally in Broughty Ferry, as well contacting neighbouring policing areas and colleagues farther afield in Scotland and the UK to see if the deceased matches any reported missing people.

“Enquiry officers have carried out enquiries with ships berthed at Dundee Port, where it’s been confirmed that all crew are accounted for and will extend their search for the man’s identity to police colleagues overseas. Checks are also being made of fingerprint and DNA databases.”