Very sad news.
Volunteers belonging to the search and rescue team for missing Irish-French teenager Nóra Quoirin found her body on Tuesday.
A press conference followed the discovery, in which police confirmed that the body “resembled” that of Nóra Quoirin, and that officials were “very certain” it was the 15-year-old.
The body was flown by helicopter to a hospital where Quoirin’s parents have now formally identified their daughter.
Quoirin had been reported missing on 4 August, shortly after her family arrived in the rainforest resort of Dusun – near the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. Suspicion was raised as Nóra suffered from learning difficulties, and struggled to walk by herself.
The body was found after a 10-day search operation, roughly 2km from the resort in a hilly area with a ravine, and had to be “winched” out.
The circumstances surrounding Nóra’s death remain unclear.
In a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, police have confirmed that the case is still considered to be a “Missing persons” case, rather than a criminal case. Police have said they will wait for the post mortem to decide the next steps of the investigation. Police would also not comment on the nature of any injuries sustained by Quoirin. The police spokesperson further confirmed that the body “was not in any clothing.”
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has issued a statement on the matter, saying: “Irish + French embassies in Malaysia working together to provide every assistance to the Quoirin family. Irish embassy is in touch with Malaysian authorities on today’s discovery of a body. At this harrowing time all of our thoughts + prayers are with the family.”
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