Identity of mystery man found dead on Skye is revealed after 15 months

The identity of a man found dead 15 months ago at a remote spot on the island of Skye was revealed by police yesterday.

Christopher Gray, whose last address was Crowborough, East Sussex, was identified by his daughter Deborah after an 11th-hour appeal to discover who he was.

He had been due to be buried in the small community cemetery on Skye in a ceremony last Friday after police and forensic scientists abandoned their quest to discover his identityafter more than a year of intensive but fruitless efforts. But on the eve of the funeral, a public appeal using an artist's impression of the man prompted a call from a woman in the south of England, who said he washer father.

Deborah had not seen him for eight years but gave police details of his last known dentist. A check of dental records confirmed his identity and the funeral was postponed.

Mr Gray, who was 65, was found dead in a makeshift shelter of plastic binbags near Sleat, on the island's southern peninsula, in October 2001. A post-mortem examination failed to establish a cause of death.

The authorities believe Mr Gray may have travelled to the island with the intention of finding somewhere to die and succumbed to hypothermia. He had no provisions, money, bank cards or means of identification when he was found, and may have deliberately tried to conceal his identity.

The only information that officers from the Northern Constabulary had to work with was that the mystery man of Skye was well-dressed, about 5ft 10in tall, of medium build and had a reddish beard. Checks with fingerprint and DNA databases did not reveal any possible names and an effort to enlist the help of dentists around the country by publishing details of the man's dental work in the British Dental Journal failed to elicit a response. An artist's impression of how the dead man may have looked did not jog any memories the first time it was released to the public.

But the search came to an end with Deborah's intervention last week, after the last-ditch appeal. It was understood yesterday that she was on her way to Skye from her home in Kent.

A police spokesman said it was too early to say whether Mr Gray's funeral would go ahead on the island or whether his family would want to take the body home to England.