A mystery man whose body was brought to the UK when he was mistaken for murdered Wolverhampton businessman Ranjit Singh Power has now been passed to the city's social services department for a funeral to be arranged.
The authorities in India repatriated the body thinking it was that of Mr Power, but DNA and dental records carried out in the UK did not match.
Det Con Zahid Ahmed, of West Midlands Police, said that although Mr Power had been officially identified by a close friend from Wolverhampton who flew out to India, DNA from Mr Power's toothbrush and dental records show he had a missing tooth didn't match those on the body. Mr Power, 55, owned Ramada Park Hotel in Goldthorn Park, Wolverhampton. He had travelled to India on business on May 7 last year and was last seen at the airport in Amritsar the following day.
Det Con Ahmed said that, unusually, there had been no contact with his family on arrival, prompting them to call the Punjab police.
Officers arrested a suspect, Subdev Singh, who is said to have confessed to Mr Power's murder and told police where he has disposed of the body.
The inquest heard that the body was among five pulled from a river on the same day. Det Con Ahmed said: "The family and West Midlands Police requested DNA testing on the body identifying it as Mr Power." But the body was repatriated without the tests.
Black Country coroner Zafar Siddique reached an open verdict, saying he cannot be sure how the man came to his death. The body can't be repatriated back to India and would be referred to social services for a funeral, although the DNA would be retained in case of further inquiries.
