Police have confirmed that human remains found near Newquay early this month are not those of Chad Gibson, who went missing from the town in December.

Police were made aware of human remains which were found in the area of Tregurrian, on the 11th of August, and Chad's family were involved of the development.

A police spokesperson said: "Initial formal identification proved inconclusive and the remains were then sent off for specialist DNA testing.

"The laboratory has since confirmed that the human bones found in the area of Newquay are not those of Chad Gibson, who is missing from St Austell.

"Chad's family have been informed of the latest development. The missing person enquiry for Chad will continue to be reviewed on a regular basis."

Chad left his home in St Austell at 10.30am on December 19 last year, and his last known movements were filmed on CCTV as he left the Central pub at around 6pm the same day.

He is described as 6ft 2ins tall, of athletic build, with brown eyes and black hair. He also has a tattoo on the left side of his neck saying ‘ANNAI’ and a scar from his right wrist to his elbow.

As the remains have been confirmed as not belonging to Chad, further comparisons will now be made on the national missing person’s database. In the meantime, police are currently only able to confirm that they are of an unknown male.

Pending the bones being identified, Newquay CID will conduct a full enquiry into how this person came to rest at this location.

Anyone who was with Chad on the night he went missing or has any information about his whereabouts please call 999 quoting enquiry EN/380/16.