Body found on shore of Cromarty Firth confirmed by family to be that of missing Highland man
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THE family of an Easter Ross man who went missing in April have confirmed the body recovered from the Cromarty Firth earlier this month was him.
Shaun Banner's devastated loved ones have paid heartfelt tribute to the "incredible" support offered by their community over the past 10 weeks.
His family confirmed today that DNA testing of the body found on the shore of the Cromarty Firth on the afternoon June 14 has been confirmed to be Shaun.
The appeal for help finding him had sparked a remarkable response from well-wishers and missing posters were seen widely in the streets of Inverness as the effort spread across a wider area as time went on.
Shaun's family posted: "As most of you know, 10 weeks ago we started our search for Shaun.
"Our searches came to a halt two-and-a-half weeks ago when a body was recovered from the water in Invergordon. We finally got answers earlier this week when we got the call to say that there was a DNA match and that the body recovered was Shaun.
"As you can imagine we are all crushed. This was never the outcome any of us wanted. Shaun was so loved, had the biggest personality, the most infectious laugh, the wickedest sense of humour, the biggest car collection and an army of people who cared about him. He’ll definitely leave a gap in all our hearts.
"We have had the most incredible support in the last 10 weeks and genuinely been blown away by the amazing people we have in our lives and community. You have carried us and continue to hold us up through the most difficult time of our lives and this is something we’ll never be able to repay you all for.
"Thank you for everything!"
Shaun’s funeral will be Monday, July 11 with details to be posted closer to the time.
