French tourist smashed off London Bridge as he walked with his girlfriend as his body is found three miles away in River Thames
POLICE have revealed they have found a body in the search for a missing Frenchman believed to have been thrown into the river during the London Bridge terror attack.
Xavier Thomas, 45, was crossing the bridge with his partner Christine Delcros on Saturday night when he is feared to have been run down by the terror trio.
Met Police confirmed today that extensive searches had been conducted, with the body of a man found near the river near Limehouse last night.
They said in a statement: “On Tuesday, 6 June at approximately 19:44hours the body of a man was recovered from the river, near Limehouse, by specialist officers from the Marine Police Unit.
“Formal identification has not yet taken place, however Mr Thomas’ next of kin have been informed of this development.”
Ms Delcros remains seriously injured after the horror attack.
Last night, police said: “Witness accounts suggest that it is possible that Xavier was struck by the van that resulted in him being thrown into the River Thames.”
Specialist officers from the Marine Policing Unit and Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), were involved in the search.
Officers also appealed for anyone who had seen Mr Thomas since June 3 or was present on the bridge to ring police on 0800 0961 233.
Family and friends of the couple had launched an online appeal for information about Mr Thomas’s whereabouts.
A number of victims of the terror attack have been named, including Australian Sara Zelenak and Kirsty Boden.
Others confirmed as being killed in the attack include Kirsty Boden, Chrissy Archibald and James McMullan.
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
- ISIS has claimed responsibility after a van ploughed through pedestrians on London Bridge just after 10pm on Saturday
- Three jihadists wearing fake bomb vests began knifing bystanders and pub-goers
- Staff at one pub barricaded the doors as the attackers tried to storm the building before the three terrorists were shot dead
- At least seven victims were killed and 48 people were injured with 18 still critical
- Four cops including British Transport Police officer among those injured
- The first two victims have been named as Canadian national Christine Archibald, a charity worker from British Columbia, and James McMullan, 32, from Hackney, east London
- Theresa May has confirmed the terror threat level will remain at ‘severe’
- Cops raid block of flats in Barking, East London, reportedly home to one of the attackers, and arrest 12 as well as sealing off East Ham flat – they have since been released without charge. Another man, 27, was arrested in Barking on Tuesday morning and remains in custody
- Police and piece together the chaos
- The Met opened a casualty bureau for those concerned about family and friends. There are two numbers to call: 0800 096 1233 and 020 7158 0197
- All the main political parties aside from UKIP suspended campaigning but have since resumed it as Mrs May confirmed the election will go ahead
- One Love Manchester Concert goes ahead as youngsters refuse to let terrorists stop them attending
- Sick ISIS thugs celebrated attack and called for more atrocities
- London Bridge Underground and National Rail stations re-opened on Monday
- Gunfire heard in Dagenham as heavily-armed cops detain several people during raids linked to the attack
- Families have shared desperate appeals for information to find loved ones still missing after the atrocity with a nanny and Frenchman among those who vanished
- The attackers have been named as 22-year-old Moroccan-Italian named as Youssef Zaghba, Khuram Butt, who starred in Channel 4 show The Jihadis Next Door, and pastry chef Rachid Redouane, 30.