Police searching Dolomites for missing Brits make fresh discovery after first hiker's body found
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Rescue teams searching for a Brit who has been missing since New Year’s Day have found several items belonging to the hiker, days after the body of his friend was discovered. Aziz Ziriat, 36, and Samuel Harris, 35, both from London, were hiking in Italy's Dolomites mountains when they went missing on January 1. They were due to return home on January 6, but when the pair failed to board their flights home, a search and rescue operation was launched.
Mr Harris’ body was found buried under snow in the Passo di Conca area on Wednesday after teams tracked their mobile phones to the area. Now teams from Italy's national alpine cliff and cave rescue corps (CNSAS) say they have found items belonging to Mr Ziriat.
It comes as Mr Harris's best friend and business partner paid tribute to him. In a post on Instagram, Spencer Jones said: "To say I am devastated would be an understatement, and I have no words to fully describe how I am feeling at the moment. "The search is ongoing for our good friend Aziz Ziriat, so for now, I want to focus on Sam. He was an amazing friend of 23 years, ever since our school days.
“He was probably the most knowledgeable person I have ever known. Building the business with him has been an incredible journey.". The pair's last known location had been a mountain hut called Casina Dosson. A video on the day they were last heard from said they planned to leave their backpacks for a day before moving to the next valley as they wanted a day "frolicking".
Joe Stone, a university friend of Mr Ziriat, previously said authorities are "trying everything" to find the 36-year-old. He said: “There is an acceptance among us it's not going to be good news, but it would be really nice to find him and be put out of this limbo.".
