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Amelia Bambridge: British backpacker drowned, Cambodian officials confirm

Backpacker's death 'not related with any other crime at all', officials say

Vincent Wood
Friday 01 November 2019 17:35 EDT
Amelia Bambridge went missing on Koh Rong island in southwestern Cambodia on 24 October 2019
Amelia Bambridge went missing on Koh Rong island in southwestern Cambodia on 24 October 2019 (AP)

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An autopsy has found British backpacker Amelia Bambridge died by accidental drowning after disappearing on a Cambodian island – with officials saying they do not believe there was any foul play behind her death.

Ms Bambridge, from Worthing, in Sussex, had been on her first trip abroad alone when she arrived at the island of Koh Rong, south west of Cambodia.

The 21-year-old’s body was spotted by fisherman around 60 miles northwest of the island – eight days after she had disappeared from a beach party on 23 October.

Major General Chuon Narin, the provincial police chief, had previously said the autopsy would be attended by forensic police, a hospital doctor, a court prosecutor, a representative of the British embassy and members of Bambridge's family.

After her disappearance her family had feared she may have been abducted, or become lost in Koh Rong's dense jungle.

At least 20 people were questioned over her disappearance in the days that followed, but no arrests were made.

And around 150 people joined the search, including the Cambodian navy, divers and police officers working alongside locals.

However after her bag, which contained her money and a mobile phone, was found on a rock near the edge of the ocean, Cambodian officials began to believe she may have drowned.

Officials have since said her death was "not related with any other crime at all", according to the BBC.

The victim's brother, Harry Bambridge, confirmed the body recovered from the pacific ocean was his sister’s.

The body is now due to be returned to Britain, according to Kuoch Chamroeun, the governor of the Preah Sihanouk province.

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