THE desperate search for missing American spring breaker James ‘Jimmy’ Gracey has ended in tragedy after officers from the Mossos d’Esquadra police force discovered his body off a Barcelona beach.
The 20-year-old’s remains were located at a depth of four metres off Somorrostro beach, just a short distance from the popular Shoko beachfront nightclub where he was last seen in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
The discovery was made after an intense search operation involving police officers, divers, drones, a helicopter and specialist maritime units, and came shortly after his wallet was found floating nearby in the sea.
The alarm was first raised after Gracey became separated with friends following a night partying at the club, located in the Vila Olimpica district, and failed to return to his rented Airbnb accommodation on Ronda de Sant Pere.
Local police later found his phone in the possession of a notorious petty thief, who said he found the device by accident.
He had arrived in the Catalan capital from Amsterdam on Monday morning to spend his spring break visiting friends who are studying abroad.
He was due to return to the United States on Sunday, according to his uncle.
Gracey was in his third year studying accounting and was also a member of the Theta Chi fraternity.
Police are working to establish the circumstances surrounding his death but believe he may have walked towards some rocks after a night of drinking and fallen into the sea.
The Mossos d’Esquadra have said they cannot rule out foul play after it emerged that Gracey left the nightclub with an unidentified stranger.
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