NCA CASE 06-024618 / NORTH WALES POLICE
Doe Network Database #3178.
The skeletal remains of a young man were found hanging from a tree by schoolboys searching for birds' nests in woodland on the Penrhyn Estate, near Bangor. Estimated as being aged between 20 and 30, little could be gleaned from the remains beyond the fact he was of medium build and would have stood between 5'4" and 5'6" (165-170cm) tall.
The Daily Post of Monday 11th May 1970 featured this report on the front page:
Bird nest boys find skeleton hanging from tree
SCHOOLBOYS loking for birds' nests yesterday found a skeleton upside down in a tree. It was 50 yards from the busy A55 coast road at Llandegai, near Bangor. On the other side of a wall, close by, is a foot-path used by children going to the local school. One of the boys, Ken Oates, aged-14, of Ffordd Tegid, Bangor, said: "We first noticed clothing on the trees. I touched a jacket and a lot of bones like ribs fell out. There was a shoe with part of an ankle in it. One of the lads shouted there was a skull hanging just behind me. It was all very frightening. The legs, all bones, seemed to have been caught in a fork up the tree."
Ken's mother said: "He came in as white as a sheet and said they had found a body."
Another of the boys, Richard Hughes, aged fifteen, of Ffordd Elfed, Bangor, said: "I ran to a house but there was no one in, and then called the police."
Spanish boots
Detective Chief Superintendent Alan Clark, head of Gwynedd CID, and other officers went to the woods, part of the Penrhyn Estate. The remains of the body and clothing were taken to the C & A General Hospital in Bangor to be examined by a pathologist. A senior officer said the body, believed to be that of a man, could have been in the woods for some years. The remains of clothing included a peaked cap with zip fasteners either side; dark blue shirt; Spanish-made boots size nine or ten; blue-grey all wool London tailored overcoat; grey trousers with light blue plastic belt and a green pullover.
The following week, the Guardian Journal of Friday 22nd May reported on the inquest:
Skeleton in tree mystery
Police inquiries throughout Britain failed to identify a skeleton of a man found in a tree in Bangor, North Wales, 10 days ago, it was said at an inquest in Bangor yesterday.
A pathologist's report said the skeleton, and items of clothing found on it und nearby, suggested the man, aged between 20 and 25, had been dead between three to five years, possibly longer. There was no evidence to say how he died.
The NCA database lists the mans clothing as consisting of socks, a blue shirt, a green jumper, and dark blue suit trousers and jacket by 'Alexander'. Over that he was wearing a blue / green wool coat from 'Manapparel'. On his feet he was wearing brown suede boots, size 9 or 10, from 'Vacon'. Finally, he had a peaked cap with a zip fastener on the side from 'Falcon Headwear'.
I couldn't find any obvious options for 'Alexander' brand, as the variants I came across (Alexander Clare, Countess Alexander, Alexander Jeanette, etc) were all women's clothing. 'Alexandre' is an Oxford Street tailor, which could make sense as the coat was described as being 'London tailored' by the press. Along with the Spanish boots and cap, the clothing seems to suggest a young man interested in fashion and / or with decent money coming in.
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