Mummifed body may be Japanese climber lost in 1972

A mummified corpse found in the Italian Alps may be the body of a Japanese tourist who disappeared in 1972.

It is believed to be the body of Japanese mountaineer Makoto Ohashi who disappeared while climbing 29 year ago.

The corpse was found in part of the Mont Blanc massif, in the Alps close to the French-Italian border.

Italian police have found a business card belonging to the missing Japanese climber close to the mummified body.

He was aged 22 at the time.

Ohashi, a shopkeeper, left one morning in July 1972 with three other climbers, in a bid to climb a 2,700 ft peak along with three friends, but he never returned.

The Japanese Foreign Ministry is trying to contact Ohashi's relatives to find someone who could identify the body, reports said.