Police have arrested two men in connection with the murder of a teenage German backpacker who had spent time in the Highlands just days before the horror killing in Northern Ireland 30 years ago.
Detectives launched a new appeal earlier this year to coincide with the anniversary of 18-year-old’s Inga Hauser’s murder.
Police Service of Northern Ireland, (PSNI) confirmed yesterday morning that they had arrested two men, aged 58 and 61, on suspicion of her murder.
They were arrested in the Loughguile area of County Antrim and were being interviewed by detectives throughout the day.
Detective Chief Superintendent Raymond Murray renewed his appeal for information in relation to the killing.
He said: “If there are any witnesses still out there with any further information which might help police then I would ask them to come forward now and speak to detectives.
“Even if there are people who know what happened but have stayed silent out of friendship or family loyalty, it is still not too late to come forward and tell us what you know.
“Failure to do so can be a criminal offence in itself and surely it would be better to come to police and discuss what happened rather than take the risk we will come to you.
Inga Maria Hauser, from Munich, was murdered in Northern Ireland in 1988, but no one has ever been convicted of killing her.
Her body was found dumped in a remote part of Ballypatrick Forest on the outskirts of Ballycastle, Co Antrim. Police believe she died shortly after arriving in Northern Ireland and that she was subject to a vicious and ruthless assault.
She had been in Inverness, cashing a £20 travelllers’ cheque, in the days before she left Scotland.
Her poignant notebook entries from the time revealed that she had breakfast in Inverness and that her journey south to Glasgow had been “beautiful.”
They revealed she intended to travel south to Dublin when she docked at Larne, Co Antrim.
But for reasons unknown, she ended up going in the opposite direction and was found dead in remote woodland two weeks later.
It is understood the IRA carried out its own investigation into the killing but nothing of significant interest came to light.
A fresh appeal for information was launched last month and detectives travelled to Scotland in an attempt to piece together her final movements.
Police received more than 30 calls from members of the public as a result.
A number of years ago, in one of the largest DNA screenings ever undertaken in the UK, 2,000 samples failed to produce a definitive match.
