Two people have come forward who may hold “relevant information” about the murder of German backpacker Inga Maria Hauser in Northern Ireland almost 40 years ago, the Coroner’s Court has been told.
The 18-year-old’s body was discovered dumped in a remote part of Ballypatrick Forest close to the seaside town of Ballycastle, Co Antrim, in April 1988. No one has ever been prosecuted for her murder.
The teenager was last seen alive on a ferry from Scotland to Larne a fortnight before her disappearance.
In her final postcard to her family in Munich, she wrote she was leaving England to travel to Ireland, with Dublin her next stop on an interrailing trip across Europe.
The inquest into Hauser’s death was announced in 2024, following a decades-long campaign by her family.
Her sister Friederike Leibl (Hauser) attended a pre-inquest review hearing in Belfast on Monday via video link.
Delivering an update on progress made towards the opening of the inquest, barrister for the coroner Philip Henry said a “further witness statement” was to be taken “from a person who contacted the coroner’s office”.
Material was also to be received “from a member of the public who conducted research in this case”, he said.
In total, the barrister said, “two individuals … have contacted your office in relation to potentially holding relevant information”.
He also updated the court on the documents received from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), which he said included “about 800 witness statements”.
A barrister for the PSNI said the materials provided already amounted to “approximately 3,200 items” and there were a further 6,000 documents to be examined for potential relevance.
These were accompanied by a 189-page index to assist in this task, he said.
The PSNI barrister said some materials “will attract sensitivity” and it was “likely” a public interest immunity application would be made.
Barrister Brenda Campbell, representing the Hauser family, said the forensic science service should be approached for any potentially relevant material.
She made a request for “rolling disclosure” of documents, saying that “from the perspective of the next of kin, we haven’t seen anything yet”.
Proceedings were adjourned for a further review hearing on May 15th.
Hauser’s killing has become one of the North’s highest-profile unsolved murders.
In 2020 a decision was taken not to prosecute a 60-year-old man who had been arrested by the PSNI in connection with her murder.
A decision was also made not to prosecute a 57-year-old woman for withholding information.
In both cases the Public Prosecution Service said that following an “extensive and detailed” police investigation it was concluded that the evidence did not provide a reasonable prospect of conviction.
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