Body found in couple search

The decomposed body was found in Benidorm

A body has been found in Spain's Costa Blanca in the region where a couple from north Wales went missing in September.

A senior North Wales Police officer said on Thursday that Spanish police had informed them of the find.

But he said it was too early to say whether the body was that of used car dealer Anthony O'Malley, 42, or his 55-year-old wife Linda, from Llangollen, who have not been seen for weeks.

Linda O'Malley and her husband are still missing

The decomposed body was found alongside the A7 road in the Villajoyosa region of Benidorm.

A North Wales Police incident room, which is co-ordinating the hunt for the couple, was informed of the discovery of the body.

Detective Chief Superintendent, Alan Jones, said that they were liaising with Spanish police and the British consulate, but at this time the Spanish police were not linking the body to the O'Malley inquiry.

"It is too early to say.

"The condition of the body is such that forensic examination will be undertaken to assist in identification," he said.

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Mr O'Malley's brother Bernard and Mrs O'Malley's daughter Nicola had earlier returned to Spain to try to solve the disappearance of the couple, which is said to be a complete mystery.

The couple's joint account card was used for several days after the pair went missing and was eventually stopped by their bank.

It was used at various locations including hypermarkets and cashpoints and around £20,000 was spent.

The couple flew from Manchester to Malaga on 30 August but they failed to appear for their return flight on September 13.

They had been hoping to buy a home in Spain but on 23 September the auction for the Villajoyosa holiday home they had been interested in went unattended.

The couple had planned a new life on the Spanish Costas, an area popular with British expatriates resettling in the sun.

It is understood that Spanish police take the view that the decomposition of the body is such that it has been there too long to be that of either of the O'Malleys.

It has not been possible to say whether the body, disturbed during a grass cutting operation, is male or female.