Missing Indian student found dead on riverbank in UK

London, Dec 1 (IANS) A 23-year-old Indian student, who moved to the UK from India on September 19, was found dead on the bank of Thames river, four days after being reported missing by his family.

Mitkumar Patel's body was found on the riverbank at Caledonian Wharf, on the Isle of Dogs, at roughly 10.45 a.m. on November 21 by a passerby, The Standard newspaper reported.

Patel, who had been staying with a cousin in Plaistow, east London, was supposed to move to Sheffield on November 20, to start a degree at Sheffield Hallam University and a part-time job at Amazon.

Patel's cousin grew worried when he failed to return home from a daily walk on November 17 and filed a missing person complaint with the police next day.

His other cousins began contacting missing persons charities, and canvassing areas he frequented with posters and flyers, the news report said.

One of the cousins said in the days before his death, Patel had sent a relative a series of voice messages in which he outlined a plan to end his life.

Scotland Yard confirmed police, paramedics and the fire brigade responded to reports a man's body had been found on the riverbank at Caledonian Wharf.

"Officers believe they know the identity of the deceased. The death is not believed to be suspicious," a spokesperson was quoted as saying in The Standard. Patel's cousins have launched a fundraiser to repatriate his body back to India.

"He belonged to a farmer family and used to live in a village. So we decided do fundraising for helping out his family and to send his body to India," Patel's cousin wrote in the fundraiser.