Investigators have ordered DNA tests on the body found at the foot of Dingli Cliffs on Tuesday to establish, scientifically, that it was really that of German teen Mike Mansholt, the Times of Malta has learnt.

The tests have been ordered in the absence of anything belonging to Mr Mansholt which could confirm his identity, according to sources close to the investigation.

The forensic examinations will be carried out while investigators continue searching for Mr Mansholt’s belongings, particularly his backpack where they are expecting to find his mobile phone and camera. These could shed more light on his final moments.

The investigators are baffled on what could have happened to the backpack the German teenager was carrying when he was last seen at the Sliema hotel he was staying in. They are suspecting the teenager must have left it somewhere before he died or else – although this possibility is still remote – that the backpack was stolen either before or after Mr Mansholt had died.

Sources close to the investigation said that although foul play has been all but ruled out, the police were looking at all the possibilities.

In a Facebook post yesterday, the German’s girlfriend, Antonia, thanked the police and volunteers involved in the search and appealed for information about the backpack.

It took civil protection members several hours to lift the corpse out of the cliff crevice. Photo: Mark Zammit CordinaIt took civil protection members several hours to lift the corpse out of the cliff crevice. Photo: Mark Zammit Cordina

“This is important to us because Mike and I took many pictures and videos together that are documenting his last week. It was a wonderful time. We, his family, see a way to experience his last days with him together, if we could just have these pictures and videos. We only care about his mobile phone and GoPro, not even about the camera, just the memory cards inside,” she said.

“Please, if you happened to have found this haversack, just contact us. If you have the feeling that the manner or style wasn’t absolutely legal, we do not mind about that at all! We won’t announce that to the police, we will not [get] you in any trouble. We simply would be very, very thankful. Please, help us keep our memories. It would mean the world to us,” she wrote in an emotional post.

The 18-year-old adventurer, who came to Malta on holiday on July 8, was found dead 10 storeys below road level near the Magdalene Chapel in Dingli, just minutes after his older brother, Daniel, had called a press conference and appealed for help in the search.

Mr Mansholt had been reported missing last Friday after missing his flight home.

The sources said Mr Mansholt was found without his running shoes a few metres from his rented bicycle. It was also established that the damage that was apparent on the bicycle was not compatible with a fall from a height.

The investigation continues.

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