POLICE have reopened a case into the identity of a body found in North Yorkshire 21 years ago.

A man was discovered in Scarborough’s harbour on May 4, 1989, and despite a number of inquiries he was never identified.

When he was found his age was estimated at between 30 and 60. He was described as white, clean shaven, weighing approximately 12 stone, 5ft 10ins tall, with brown eyes.

He had a full head of black collar length hair that was turning grey and possibly combed into a centre parting. His teeth were all natural, with fillings and gold capping.

Pathologists found a scar and swelling just above his left ankle, caused by a fracture that had not healed properly, and may have caused him to walk with a limp.

When his body was recovered he was wearing brown cotton trousers, a beige cotton shirt, grey slip-on shoes, black socks and a long green, nylon anorak with a zipped hood. He also wore a Sekonda wrist watch.

Detective Sergeant Stuart Thompson, of North Yorkshire Police, said the police had released the details now as part of a review of unsolved cases.

He said: “Someone out there must know who he is. If you lost someone in 1989 and you don’t know what happened to them, then this man could be that person.

“It is known that he stayed at a hotel in Scarborough for two nights. He left on May 1, 1989, and was last seen alive in the early evening of that day. “All he had with him was a Greater Manchester Police property bag containing a few toiletries, a Barclays Bank cheque stub and cheque book cover, a newspaper, a used rail ticket from Blackburn to Todmorden and a railway timetable.”

Police have released a facial sketch of the man, in the hope of jogging someone’s memory and help to establish who he is and how he came to be in the sea at Scarborough.

Anyone with information should phone DS Thompson on 0845 6060247.