A body recovered from the mouth of the Humber Estuary is that of missing student Libby Squire, police have confirmed.
The 21-year-old went missing last month after a night out in Hull, where she was studying at the city’s university.
Her remains were first spotted close to Grimsby Docks by the coastguard shortly before 2.30pm on Wednesday.
Humberside Police finally confirmed the recovered body was that of Ms Squire – originally from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire - on Thursday evening following a post-mortem.
Detective Superintendent Martin Smalley said: "A post-mortem examination commenced this afternoon and is continuing to be carried out this evening, however formal identification has now taken place and we can confirm the body recovered is that of missing woman Libby Squire.”
The find comes just a week after Ms Squire’s mother, Lisa, paid tribute to her daughter to mark six weeks since she vanished.
“As a family, we are really struggling,” she said. “The whole family miss Libby beyond belief. Libby’s disappearance is having a big effect on all of us."
The investigation into her disappearance - which had officially remained a missing person’s inquiry - is now expected to be turned into a murder case.
Hundreds of officers and 50 detectives have already been assigned to searching for the youngster, who was a second year philosophy and religion student.
She was last seen getting into a taxi at Hull’s Welly Club and is thought to have arrived at her student digs in the city’s Wellesley Avenue at about 11:30pm that night. She was then spotted on CCTV near a bench on Beverley Road 10 minutes later.
Crucially, perhaps, the River Hull, which drains into the Humber Estuary, flows just 300 yards from Ms Squire’s university digs.
A 24-year-old man arrested on suspicion of abduction remains a person of interest, police said.
Pawel Relowicz, of Raglan Street, Hull, is remanded in custody on unrelated charges of burglary, voyeurism, outraging public decency and receiving stolen goods.
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