A French skier who went missing in the Alps more than 60 years ago was identified via social media.
ADVERTISEMENTA French skier who disappeared in the Alps more than 60 years ago has been identified after his story was shared on social media.
Human remains, ski equipment, and the man's glasses were found in 2005 in Italy's valley Aosta region.
Investigators had been unable to identify him until the prosecutor posted the information on Facebook last month.
The story was soon picked up by French media. Frenchwoman Emma Nassem heard about it on the radio and said the missing man could be her uncle, Henri Le Masne, born in 1919, who went missing after skiing in a storm near the Matterhorn in 1954.
The skier's younger brother, 94-year-old Roger Le Masne, also came forward.
In an email made available by police, he said: “I am the brother of Henri Le Masne ... who is likely the skier who disappeared 64 years ago. He was a bachelor and quite independent. He worked in the finance ministry in Paris.”
The police then carried out a DNA test that confirmed the identification.
The police added that a photograph provided by the family showed glasses matching those found by the investigators.