A British tourist who went missing in Venice while on a Valentine's trip with his girlfriend has been found dead.

The body of Richard John Raynor, 23, from Doncaster, was discovered under a bridge connecting Venice lagoon to the mainland, the Foreign Office confirmed.

Mr Raynor disappeared in the early hours of Thursday morning as the couple were returning to their hotel.

It is understood Mr Raynor's father, William, who flew to Venice to search for his son, identified the body.

Alarm raised

A Foreign Office spokesman said on Sunday: "We can confirm that sadly, the body found in Venice is that of the missing British national."

Earlier, an Italian police spokesman, Alessandro Guiliano said there were no indications that Mr Raynor's death had been violent, although he said they were "not ruling out any hypothesis".

The couple arrived in the Mestre area of the city on Wednesday for a three-day break.

After checking into their hotel, they went out in Venice, and according to Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper, spent the evening there.

It is understood Mr Raynor vanished as his girlfriend was looking for a taxi.

She was unable to reach him on his mobile phone and later contacted police after he did not return to their hotel.

An elderly couple later returned Mr Raynor's mobile, wallet and room key to the hotel. It is not known where they were found.