Police have confirmed that a skeleton found in riverside mud near Bristol on Tuesday evening was not that of Manic Street Preachers guitarist Richey Edwards – now missing for eight years after leaving his car abandoned at a motorway service station near the Old Severn Bridge. The discovery of the skeleton is the latest in a string of false leads into the disappearance of the former Manic.
Edwards' family have always refused to give up their quest to find the musician, who would now be 35 years old. Meanwhile band members James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire and Sean Moore have continued to pay the guitarist's share of their royalties into a trust fund for him if he returns. His parents were entitled to claim his estate after seven years - but vowed never to give up hope that he may be found one day.
Confirming the latest finding was not Edwards police said: "Investigations are continuing to discover the identity of this person and this could take several weeks."