The mystery began in September, when residents of the suburb of Mortlake, in west London, saw the body of a man crumpled on the pavement.
Police are asking citizens to help if anyone recognizes the image of the man and the photo of the tattoo
At first, the police thought it was a murder victim, but the next day they concluded that the man had fallen from the sky, most likely from one of the planes landing at the nearby Heathrow airport.
Apparently, this stowaway had no personal documents. Some Angolan money was found on him, which led the police to assume that he was an Angolan citizen. Especially when the investigation showed that the plane from this country was landing at the time when a dead man was found on the street.
The locals did not find this explanation strange, given that they were used to seeing low-flying planes. Two days after the body was found, the cause of death was listed as "multiple injuries".
Weak screening at airports
These days, four months after the tragedy, the police are asking citizens to help if anyone recognizes the picture of the man and the photo of the tattoo he had on his left arm.
When the plane climbs to 10.000 meters, there is a lack of oxygen
Although there are no precise data, it is known that in recent years an increasing number of stowaways try to come to Western Europe by hiding in the landing gear of passenger planes. According to aviation security expert Chris Yates, poor security screening at airports in Africa also contributes to this.
"People often hide in the wheel well or in the trunk of the plane, which are places that are not necessarily under pressure. When the plane climbs to 10.000 meters, there is a lack of oxygen. There are low temperatures of even minus 40 or minus 50 degrees " says Chris Yates.
He adds that the man found on the street in Mortlake probably died within the first hour of the flight.
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