‘Ray’ the wild forest boy: the mystery continues

THE STORY of 'Ray', the English-speaking teenager who turned up at Berlin's City Hall on September 5 claiming that he had spent the previous five years living wild in woodland south of the German capital, continues to captivate the media.

German authorities are attempting to establish the true identity of the youth, who speaks very little German but is fluent in English. "His story is highly unusual and raises some questions," member of the police told reporters. "But we believe it is credible – that is why we are investigating."

The police have called in linguistic experts who are attempting to work out where the youth is from by his accent. The British embassy in Berlin is also set to offer assistance to the authorities.

'Ray', who is estimated to be about 17, was carrying a rucksack, tent and sleeping bag when he turned up two weeks ago, and said that he had been living in the woods for the last five years since his mother, Doreen, died.

He had spent that time with his father, Ryan, who recently died following a fall. 'Ray' buried him in a shallow grave then set off to the German capital, as his father had instructed him to do in case of an emergency.

Berlin police believe that the pair were living in the Bayerischer national park, which straddles the border with the Czech Republic, or else in the Erzegebirge region. They are planning to take the youth to either site to find his father's grave.

'Ray' says that the pair slept in tents or dugouts during their time in the woods, and fed themselves by hunting and foraging. He made his way to Berlin with the aid of a compass.

"We are determined to find out the identity of this boy but at this time must also ensure his protection and his privacy," a Berlin police spokeswoman said. “If over the coming days, we haven’t progressed it may be that we have to release a photo of him to see if anyone can identify him.

"We’ll do everything we can to find out who he is." ·