A British school supervisor who went missing after leaving a packed bar is thought to have frozen to death in the French Alps after his body was found by a helicopter.
Owen Lewis, 22 and originally from Coventry, is understood to have got lost in the early hours of Tuesday as he tried to find his holiday apartment in Risoul.
Posters in the Yeti Cave (La Grotte du Yeti) had gone up with pictures of Owen, asking for people to report any sightings to the police.
The bar and restaurant is hugely popular with a young, international après ski crowd, and it is open until 2am.
An investigating source said: "He was seen in the early hours on Tuesday, and had been in the bar by himself while waiting for friends to join him in Rioul the next day.
"The victim’s body was found by a mountain stream, and footprints pointed to him getting lost, and then freezing in the snow. However, an enquiry into exactly what happened is ongoing."
Owen was working as a school supervisor in Neuvic, in the Correze department, after moving to France from Britain to join his parents.
He had studied mechanical engineering at college in France, and was passionate about outdoor sports, especially cycling.
Owen’s accommodation in Risoul was just a few hundred yards from the Yeti, but it is thought that he took a wrong turn.
His disappearance was reported on Tuesday afternoon, after family members and friends were unable to contact him by phone. He was said to be wearing a white ski jacket with multi-coloured shapes on it, light blue trousers, white trainers and a mauve shirt.
**URGENT** Missing for over 24hrs unexpectedly
– Owen Lewis – Last seen in #Risoul Ski Resort (French Alps between the towns of #Briançon and #Gap) yesterday (02/01/18) morning, this is not a joke, police have been informed, PLEASE SHARE !!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/EwkBmychN0— Trina Summerfield (@charentehouses) January 3, 2018
A helicopter from the National Gendarmerie at nearby Briancon with mountain rescuers on board spotted the body at around 5pm today.
When officers arrived on foot, they recognised Owen immediately from the bar posters, and then found his identity papers including passport.
Investigations are still underway in to the tragedy, with local detectives carrying out enquiries.
Risoul is at 1850m, and in the eastern Hautes-Alpes department of south east France. It is hugely popular with British holidaymakers.
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