Images recorded on the phone used by Brit hiker Esther Dingley whose remains were found in the Pyrenees could hold important clues as to how she died.
Investigators say that the mobile phone - a £270 Redmi Note 9 Pro - could hold the key to explaining her tragic death on the mountain.
The device is said to have been taken for analysis by officials looking into the death.
The 37-year-old Oxford graduate vanished last November during a solo hike in the Pyrenees mountains.
Her remains were discovered surrounded by some of her hiking kit, including brightly coloured clothes and a yellow sleeping mat, earlier this week.
The discovery by her boyfriend, Dan Colegate, 38, happened despite repeated searches of the area by French authorities.
Specialist teams made up of high mountain police and soldiers supported by aircraft and sniffer dogs had completely failed to locate any of it.
This was after a bone from Esther’s skull was found close to her last known route on the Porte de la Gléré mountain pass between Spain and France a fortnight ago.
Officials are investigation the circumstances and a police source said at the time they were still working on the theory that Esther died by accident.
Now, The Sun reports that the mobile phone despite being switched off for much of her solo walk to save batteries, likely carried on sending signals before her death.
And any images in its memory could give vital clues as to what exactly happened to her, investigators said.
A source said: “Phones are always crucial to solving cases like this.
“This is why the device will be picked over by the forensics officers working on the case.
"As far as the ongoing investigation is concerned, it is easily the most important bit of equipment.”
She was seen by fellow hikers on November 22, when she also sent a photo to her partner from the mountain top.
A solar panel and communications mast were reflected in her sunglasses.
Police were said to have declined to confirm if the phone had been recovered as forensic work continued at the scene.
On Wednesday, a team of Criminal Investigation Technicians from Toulouse was still up in the mountains, examining the place where Mr Colegate found Esther’s ‘skeletal remains’.
They were said to be in a ‘natural hideaway’, such as a gully or cave, said another investigating source.
The breakthrough came soon after French investigators admitted for the first time that Esther's death may have been the result of foul play.
