DAILY MAIL
Teenage boy who was found dead on railway tracks after falling from a plane has still not been identified two years on
- He is believed to have fallen from a plane flying into Heathrow from Lagos
- Dental aging indicates he was in his late teens and between 15 and 18 years old
A teenage boy was found dead on railway tracks after falling from a plane has still not been identified two years on.
His body was found on the tracks in Richmond upon Thames, between Mortlake and North Sheen stations on December 14, 2020 after the boy fell from a flight to Heathrow.
He is believed to be between 15 and 18 years old and suffered ‘major injuries’ to his head, neck, chest and torso, The Sun reports.
His injuries were consistent for someone falling from a height like that of an ‘overflying aircraft’ and colliding with a moving train.
The British Transport Polic was called around 10am, but paramedics pronounced the boy dead at the scene.
His identity is still a mystery to authorities, who haven’t been able to find out who the boy is and contact his family, despite two years having passed since he was found.
The teenage boy didn’t carry any form of identification and he had no visible tattoos or scars, but he was mysteriously missing both shoes and socks.
He was reportedly wearing a green polo shirt with ‘Sulid Supra Used High Quality Motorcycle Parts’ printed on it, but the owners of the motorbike shop in Nigeria the shirt was traced back to were unable to identify the boy.
Nigerian authorities even circulated a picture of the boy, to no avail.
At an inquest at West London Coroners Court, the court was told that British Transport Police and the National Crime Agency had shown ‘sterling efforts’ in their investigation.
A post-mortem examination found that he didn’t show any signs of natural diseases. His age of 15 to 18 was suggested due to his teeth indicating he was in his late teens.
His cause of death was hypothermia and hypoxia at altitude, which is a common cause of death for those hiding in the wheel storage of an aircraft.
Forensic pathologist Dr Robert Charles Chapman said the boy likely died prior to landing on the railway track.
CCTV revealed the body being visible on the tracks at 8.07am and investigators developed the theory that the boy must have fallen from a flight from Lagos, which arrived at Heathrow six hours before his body was found.
While the CCTV had been overwritten, boot marks were found in the wheel well of the aircraft.
Acting Senior Coroner Lydia Brown said his cause of death was misadventure and added that she was conscious the boy’s family was out there wondering what happened to him.
She told the court: ‘Sadly, the contact has not been made for me to share what I know about this young man,’ according to The Sun.
