Gloucestershire Constabulary appeal after body remained undiscovered for a year in woodland

Found by a forestry worker in May last year, officers have now released a picture of what he may have looked like.

The body of the man, who could be from Wiltshire, was discovered near the Bathurst Estate in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, close to the A419 Stroud Road.

After nearly 12 months, officers from Gloucestershire Constabulary have completed their initial investigations but have been unable to identify the man despite forensic and DNA examinations being carried out.

They believe the man was an "isolated" and "transient" character, due to the lack of personal items - such as a mobile phone or ID - found on him.

Wiltshire Police has now been drafted in to spread the call for information.

It’s believed that the remains had been there for at least a year.

Following reports from both a forensic Anthropologist and Odontologist, police believe that the body was of a white man between 5ft 5in and 5ft 8in tall, and may have been of a large build.

These reports also suggest that the man was around 28-31 years old, however forensic officers add that it's hard to calculate this so he could have been anywhere between the ages of 28 and 55.

When found, the body was clothed in a black/dark grey Peter Storm raincoat, a grey/blue short sleeved shirt (with hand stitched repairs), a black gilet, and blue trousers with a dark leather belt.

Dark trainers with a white sole and a beige baseball cap were also found next to the body.

A small Sony wireless FM radio, aviator sunglasses, a wind up torch and a Karrimor rucksack (which had a white plastic bag covering it in an attempt to waterproof it) were nearby and these are distinctive items which may help to identify him.

No personal items such as a mobile phone or identification were found.

Police add that due to the location where the remains were discovered, it's believed that he may have been travelling between Cirencester and Stroud.

It was previously thought that the man may have been homeless who is known to the area, but this is no longer the case, and they instead believe that he regularly travelled between different areas of the county.

A statement from the force said: "We understand that it may be hard to think back this far but if you know of someone who matches the above description that you haven’t seen for some time, or believe that you've previously driven past this man within the county please let us know."

Anyone with information is asked to call 101, quoting reference Operation Octave