THE remains of a woman found in Mexico are thought to be those of Buckinghamshire backpacker Brenda Searle.

Ms Searle went missing while travelling in the country in September last year.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office said that they were waiting for a formal identification on the body which is believed to be the 27-year-old, who grew up in Princes Risborough.

Ms Searle disappeared after failing to meet her boyfriend at the site of a Mayan Temple tourist spot in the state of Yucatan in Mexico.

She had planned to spend a fortnight with her boyfriend, Andre van de Vooren, who was working as a tourist guide in Mexico.

The following day Ms Searle's credit and bank cards, which she carried in a money belt, were used to withdraw £270 from an automatic teller machine.

Ms Searle had lived in Bucks until she was 11-years-old when the family moved to The Netherlands.