PSNI says it's not too late to give information on German tourist's murder

Inga Maria Hauser was found murdered two weeks after arriving in Northern Ireland on a ferry from Scotland

A senior PSNI detective has told those who know who killed a German backpacker in Northern Ireland that it is not too late to give information to the police.

Inga Maria Hauser's body was found in a remote part of Ballypatrick Forest, near Ballycastle, County Antrim, on 20 April 1988. Her neck was broken.

The 18-year-old, originally from Munich, went missing after she arrived in Larne on a ferry from Scotland.

No one has been convicted in connection with her murder.

Det Ch Supt Raymond Murray said officers remained "tantalisingly close" to catching those responsible for what police have described as a vicious and ruthless assault.

'Strenuous efforts'

He said he believed that "there are people in the community who know who killed Inga Maria".

"If everyone who has information was prepared to place it before the courts, then a different resolution to the case would be possible.

"Inga Maria's family deserve to know what happened and bring them some degree of closure."

A number of years ago, DNA screenings were undertaken to find a match to a male genetic profile found at the murder scene.

However, the 2,000 samples screened failed to find a definitive match.

Mr Murray said that there had been "strenuous efforts" to find those responsible and those efforts were continuing.

He added that "extensive inquiries" have been made with those who were on the ferry with Ms Hauser in 1988, as well as a house-to-house inquiries.