Found Deceased Spain - Esther Dingley, from UK, missing in the Pyrenees, November 2020 #5

[Grouse]

RIP Esther Dingley, forever in the mountains


As expected, still so sad.

Indeed. May she rest in peace.

 

[SveJeMoguce]

Esther Dingley: remains found in Pyrenees are missing Briton’s

“At this stage, with just a single bone found and no sign of equipment or clothing in the immediate area (which has been closely searched again over several days), the details of what happened and where still remain unknown.

“The search and rescue teams intend to continue their search on foot and with drones, particularly trying to find some sign of Esther’s equipment to understand how this tragedy occurred.

“The family would like to express their gratitude to the officers in charge of the various police units in France and Spain, the British consulates in Bordeaux and Barcelona, and LBT Global, all of whom have remained in close contact with us for months now. Their continued support and their determination to find answers is welcome.”


BBM

Just a single bone? My heart breaks for that family.. RIP Esther

 

[Barbieshell]

Rest easy beautiful Esther, I'm relieved this brings some closure to her family and friends bless her.
I hope the search continues for further remains / her equipment so that they can get a good idea of what happened to her.

 

[Steve13]

No, a murder would not take place at high altitude. Nor would the murder be planned. Nor would it be in France. My theory is she was murdered opportunistically, most probably by a hunter on the Spanish side in the valley where there is a public road - specifically at Besurta cabin the evening when she came down from Sauvegarde. She had previously spent the night there. The surrounding area is also very amenable to hiding a body under rocks - I would say the most likely place in the whole search area. The body would eventually be exposed by the weather or rooted out by animals. Lammergeiers, which are certainly in the area, would then carry the bones to the high-altitude slopes for breaking and eating, as we know they do.
I don't rule out other theories but I would say this is the most economical theory possible, and is consistent with all known circumstances as well as with human nature.

Interesting. I wonder if the discovery of ED bones north of the Pic De S might make it too much of a stretch for her body/equipment to be South at Besurta?

 

[ZaZara]

Link to press release from LT Global:

https://www.lbt.global/media-releases

LBT Global Chief Executive Matthew Searle MBE said;

“This is the tragic end we have all feared. This is devastating news for Esther’s loved ones – never before have I seen such incredible determination as that shown by Daniel in his relentless physical search of the mountains. We ask that media leave the family in peace at this incredibly difficult time."


The investigation into the circumstances surrounding Esther’s death is still very much in its infancy, and updates will be issued by LBT Global as they become available. For now, however, we urge that Esther's loved ones are left in peace to come to terms with this horrific news, and that online speculation is kept to a minimum. There will be no further statement or interview until further notice – please do not attempt to contact the family.


BBM

 

[Officer Dibble]

RIP Esther
Human remains found in mountains confirmed as Brit woman missing for 8 months

 

[imstilla.grandma]

I’m so very sad to come across this article. Thank you everyone for sticking with Esther and her loved ones until she is able to lay and sleep peacefully. I’ve not regularly posted but have kept up with her case since the beginning. I’m sure her family is experiencing grief unknown to most. Personal experience assures me ~ knowing is better than not knowing. Hoping that Esther will walk through their door someday would have stayed within their hearts, minds and souls forevermore. Although the pain never goes away, a serene grieving soul-searching relief will soon be felt. RIP Esther.

Her partner, Daniel Colegate, and her mother, Ria Bryant, said in a joint statement: “We are distraught to report that we have received DNA confirmation that one of the bones found last week belongs to Esther.

“We have all known for many months that the chance we would get to hug our beloved Esther again, to feel her warm hand in ours, to see her beautiful smile and to watch the room light up again whenever she arrived was tiny, but with this confirmation that small hope has now faded. It is devastating beyond words.

“At this stage, with just a single bone found and no sign of equipment or clothing in the immediate area (which has been closely searched again over several days), the details of what happened and where still remain unknown.

“The search and rescue teams intend to continue their search on foot and with drones, particularly trying to find some sign of Esther’s equipment to understand how this tragedy occurred.

“The family would like to express their gratitude to the officers in charge of the various police units in France and Spain, the British consulates in Bordeaux and Barcelona, and LBT Global, all of whom have remained in close contact with us for months now. Their continued support and their determination to find answers is welcome.”
Esther Dingley: remains found in Pyrenees are missing Briton’s

 

[ZaZara]

Pyrénées. Le crâne retrouvé est bien celui d'Esther Dingley, l'Anglaise portée disparue depuis huit mois | Actu Toulouse

Painful news for Esther Dingley's relatives, more than eight months after her mysterious disappearance during a hike in the Pyrenees: the human skull found last week, near a hiking trail at Port de la Gléré, in Bagnères-de-Luchon (Haute-Garonne), is indeed that of the British blogger, aged 37 at the time of her disappearance, Actu Toulouse heard on Friday 30 July 2021, from the charity LBT Global, who are assisting Dan and Esther's family.

Spanish hikers raised the alarm at the end of last week after discovering what they believed to be the remains of a human body near the spot where Esther Dingley last made contact with her partner. The bones, which included a skull, were examined at the forensic laboratory in Toulouse

According to our information, two of the bones found turned out to be "of animal origin", but the piece of skull, which included the remains of long hair, was indeed human. The DNA and morphological analyses carried out by specialists in Toulouse confirmed that it was that of Esther Dingley.

The gendarmes expected this outcome, as it was the "only disappearance currently reported in the area" on the French side. Esther Dingley's mother, who had been living in the area for several months in order to trace her daughter, had provided a scan of Esther's teeth and a DNA sample.

After this macabre discovery, it was first the Spanish Civil Guard that went to the scene, but it then alerted the French gendarmerie, after discovering that the place was just across the border. The gendarmes of the Saint-Gaudens company "combed the area with a fine-tooth comb", said Colonel Xavier Wargnier of the Gendarmerie of Occitanie. "They combed everything". No other part of the body, nor any belongings of the victim, were found. No bag, no clothes. Not even her famous bright yellow tent...

The investigation was entrusted by the prosecutor of Saint-Gaudens Christophe Amunzateguy to the investigation section of Toulouse.

Although they were discovered at an altitude covered by snow for a good part of the winter, these bones were not there a few weeks ago. As Jean-Marc Bordinaro, the second in command of the Saint-Gaudens gendarmerie company, told Actu Toulouse on Monday: "Everything suggests that these are bones recently moved by animals", as they were not there a few weeks ago. They have "certainly stayed in a cavity", said the officer.

"This is the most plausible hypothesis", said Colonel Wargnier, but it is not the only one either: found at an altitude of 2,200 metres, on the French side of the Port de la Gléré, a few hundred metres from the Spanish side, they could also have fallen down the mountain with the thaw or the rain. Especially as it is a snowy place for a good part of the winter, and it is therefore very difficult to access. The weather conditions and the snowfall had forced the gendarmes to suspend the search.

The skull in question was found "in the sector that Esther Dingley was supposed to have taken when she disappeared," Jean-Marc Bordinaro had indicated. A perimeter combed from top to bottom by the police during the various search operations on site.


BBM

 

[poirotoupierrot]

I think it's worth remembering, for anyone in the UK who's not been there, the Pyrenees has wolves, and eagles and bears. Animals moving around remains is highly likely. I just don't know if we'll ever get a full explanation if someone did do something to Esther. That's the sad truth. Then again, if her blood-sugar was low, what if she just had a fall in the wrong place and animals did what animals do? It's really hard, but the truth might be one we've all been avoiding thinking about. A solitary death, in the mountains, hopefully unconscious, with no-one around to help.

Pyrénées. Le crâne retrouvé est bien celui d'Esther Dingley, l'Anglaise portée disparue depuis huit mois | Actu Toulouse

Painful news for Esther Dingley's relatives, more than eight months after her mysterious disappearance during a hike in the Pyrenees: the human skull found last week, near a hiking trail at Port de la Gléré, in Bagnères-de-Luchon (Haute-Garonne), is indeed that of the British blogger, aged 37 at the time of her disappearance, Actu Toulouse heard on Friday 30 July 2021, from the charity LBT Global, who are assisting Dan and Esther's family.

Spanish hikers raised the alarm at the end of last week after discovering what they believed to be the remains of a human body near the spot where Esther Dingley last made contact with her partner. The bones, which included a skull, were examined at the forensic laboratory in Toulouse

According to our information, two of the bones found turned out to be "of animal origin", but the piece of skull, which included the remains of long hair, was indeed human. The DNA and morphological analyses carried out by specialists in Toulouse confirmed that it was that of Esther Dingley.

The gendarmes expected this outcome, as it was the "only disappearance currently reported in the area" on the French side. Esther Dingley's mother, who had been living in the area for several months in order to trace her daughter, had provided a scan of Esther's teeth and a DNA sample.

After this macabre discovery, it was first the Spanish Civil Guard that went to the scene, but it then alerted the French gendarmerie, after discovering that the place was just across the border. The gendarmes of the Saint-Gaudens company "combed the area with a fine-tooth comb", said Colonel Xavier Wargnier of the Gendarmerie of Occitanie. "They combed everything". No other part of the body, nor any belongings of the victim, were found. No bag, no clothes. Not even her famous bright yellow tent...

The investigation was entrusted by the prosecutor of Saint-Gaudens Christophe Amunzateguy to the investigation section of Toulouse.

Although they were discovered at an altitude covered by snow for a good part of the winter, these bones were not there a few weeks ago. As Jean-Marc Bordinaro, the second in command of the Saint-Gaudens gendarmerie company, told Actu Toulouse on Monday: "Everything suggests that these are bones recently moved by animals", as they were not there a few weeks ago. They have "certainly stayed in a cavity", said the officer.

"This is the most plausible hypothesis", said Colonel Wargnier, but it is not the only one either: found at an altitude of 2,200 metres, on the French side of the Port de la Gléré, a few hundred metres from the Spanish side, they could also have fallen down the mountain with the thaw or the rain. Especially as it is a snowy place for a good part of the winter, and it is therefore very difficult to access. The weather conditions and the snowfall had forced the gendarmes to suspend the search.

The skull in question was found "in the sector that Esther Dingley was supposed to have taken when she disappeared," Jean-Marc Bordinaro had indicated. A perimeter combed from top to bottom by the police during the various search operations on site.


BBM

 

[poirotoupierrot]

If we take the dossier as wholly reliable then we can be confident that ED did not take a compass with her. This is an extraordinary detail.

What if she just lost the map and phone somehow? A trip? Dropped a bag with stuff in over a drop. That would mess things up as light fails. I now realise it could have been something as simple as that. She may not even have fallen. There could have just been bad weather. RIP Esther. Feel so sad for her family. I really hope she didn't suffer and she just slept on the clouds, unaware of everything.

 

[Sally4x]

Sad news. R.I.P. Esther. My thoughts are with her family and friends.

 

[ChiCubs2016]

Esther Dingley: Human remains found are missing British hiker's, charity says

Human remains found in the search for a missing British hiker have been confirmed as being hers, a charity says.

A bone found in the mountain range last week was DNA tested and confirmed as being Ms Dingley's, said the overseas crisis support charity LBT Global (formerly the Lucie Blackman Trust).



It makes me sad but also happy that the family and Dan will finally get some closure on this.

RIP Esther.

 

[jamjim]

RIP Esther

 

[HongKongPhooey]

So sad to see this today. Sincere condolences to Dan and Esther's family.

 

[Sarahlou]

RIP Esther. I'm glad they have confirmation it's her, as sad as it is.

 

[RickshawFan]

I was wondering exactly that. Does a single IGN map cover the area she was walking over? Was ED carrying an IGN map?

Is IGN a topographical map?

 

[RickshawFan]

I feel profoundly sad to think that Esther may have laid there injured but alive for some time, while it took 3 days (according to dossier) for SAR to be alerted. I also really hope SAR were not alerted on 24th (as Daily Mail has it) then allowed 2 nights to pass before commencing the search.

SAR often has to assemble. They also have to wait for a good weather window, otherwise the risk is too high for the rescue team, thus compounding a tragedy. This is normal.

 

[poirotoupierrot]

Amazing facts, NoSI. A PH of one!

Was ED a chemistry major too, or was it just DC? (Sorry, not casting aspersions here, just wondered)

 

[poirotoupierrot]

Yes he doesn't, at face value, seem like the kind of guy getting a backhander from the local tourist agency to conceal the presence of hundreds of drugs-war-related corpses hanging from bridges in Pyrenean villages with warning notices hastily attached to their chests.

Although this is still a possibility.

 

[poirotoupierrot]

I guess the term is relative to how old you are
It doesn't look bad to me from the 3D satellite images. This website describes the route as a 'fun excursion' and 'an excellent path' Port De La Glere
In any case, would be easy to find her gear along there if she had an accident.
I'm assuming she even didn't make it there. Everything's possible, but I would think <1% probability.

I agree, not finding her yellow tent and gear seems very odd to me. Perhaps they've explained it away by saying shifts in snow and ice over the months mean it could have slithered anywhere out of site...I just don't know why it wouldn't show up when the snow has melted. Really odd.