Body found in river confirmed as ferry jump boy Jordan Cobb

Jordan Cobb was spotted jumping from the Torpoint ferry into the River Tamar on New Year's Eve (PA)

A body found in a river is that of missing teenager Jordan Cobb, it was confirmed today.

Police believe the 16-year-old - missing for more than three weeks - may have jumped from the Torpoint ferry into the River Tamar between Devon and Cornwall over a £100 bet.

He was on his way from Plymouth with a group of friends to a New Year's Eve party in Torpoint at the time. Witnesses raised the alarm at around 9pm but he was not seen alive again after entering the icy water and trying to swim to the shore, before disappearing from sight.

The inquest into Jordan's death, at which his identity was confirmed, was opened and adjourned in Plymouth today.

It was also revealed that the boy was still wearing earphones attached to his mobile phone when his lifeless body was recovered from the river last week.

Coroner Andrew Cox recorded drowning as the provisional cause of death following the post-mortem examination - a matter which will be revisited when the hearing reopens at a later date.

Mr Cox said he was confident the body was that of Jordan due to a number of "distinctive tattoos", including one dedicated to the boy's grandfather on his upper arm.

A report prepared by coroner's officer Geoff Dawson said: "The body (recovered from the Tamar) also had earphones in the ears attached to a mobile phone.

"The tattoos, the clothing and the phone are consistent with those on Jordan at the time he went into the water."

No members of Jordan's family were present at the five-minute hearing today, at which Mr Cox described how Jordan was seen to "enter the water" approximately 70 metres from the Torpoint side.

The coroner said: "He (Jordan) was seen to surface and began swimming, but was then lost from sight."

Today's hearing came as friends of the popular teenager set up a page on Facebook to help cover the cost of the funeral.

A Devon and Cornwall Police spokesman said Ministry of Defence (MoD) Police received a report of a body in the River Tamar on the Torpoint side at around 5pm on Wednesday, January 16.

An MoD launch was sent to an area close to where the ferry docks, and the body was recovered.

During the search for clues surrounding Jordan's death, police said they were still trying to trace a handful of people who are believed to have been with the Stoke Damerel Community College student in the moments leading up to his disappearance.

They have been scanning social media and speaking to other witnesses, and say they believe the incident may be a "prank gone wrong".

Jordan's friends had previously searched sections of the coastline from the shore in an attempt to find him, as well as bombarding the internet with calls to keep up the hunt.

One Facebook page, entitled Jordan Cobb funeral funding, has been set up to assist the teenager's family in paying for funeral costs.

Tracy Blasby, who created the group, wrote: "This is an awful time for them (Jordan's family) and the last thing they need to worry about is money so we are trying to raise money to take the burden off the family."

The group's homepage contains details of a bank account set up specifically for donations, the organiser said. The group currently has more than 1,500 members.

No date was set for the inquest to resume.

PA