The search for a missing German man, who abandoned his belongings close to a seaside cliff in Aberdeen, continued yesterday.
A walker alerted the emergency services at around 12.20pm on Monday after finding a rucksack abandoned close to the water at Cove.
The person who reported the bag to the police said they were concerned because they had spotted a man wearing a red waterproof jacket in the same area the day before.
After police arrived at the scene, they discovered personal items, understood to belong to Benjamin Ludwig, a 34-year-old from Germany, at a nearby cliff top.
Yesterday, extensive searches on land and sea were carried out by police, coastguard and RNLI lifeboat teams, as part of ongoing efforts to trace the man.
Officers have also carried out door-to-door inquiries to establish where the German was before he went missing.
Inspector Rob Sturton is leading the investigation. He said: “Extensive coastline searches were launched following the recovery of items we believe belong to Benjamin.
“At this point in time, we don’t know much about Benjamin or why he is in the north-east, and we have a team of officers urgently trying to piece together his movements in the lead-up to his belongings being found.
“We understand Benjamin is a German national and might have only been in the area for a few days.
“As such, I would appeal to anyone who knows him or who has seen a man matching his description to contact us as soon as possible.
“In particular, I would appeal to any hotel or B&B owners who may recognise Benjamin as one of their guests, or bar or restaurant owners who may have served him to please contact us.
“Any information at all could be vital. Our specialist Police Search Advisors will continue to work closely with HM Coastguard to coordinate these searches.
“Our main priority is to ensure Benjamin is safe and well, and we would urge anyone with information – or even Benjamin himself – to get in touch.
“We’re keen to establish if he was indeed the man wearing the red waterproof jacket at Cove.
“If you recognise this person as yourself, please get in touch.”
Officers have appealed for anyone who knows Mr Ludwig, or anyone who has seen him to phone the police on 101.
