Mystery donor pays for return of expat's body 01/09/2006 00:00

1 September 2006

MADRID — An anonymous donor has paid for the body of a British expat who died in a car crash to be returned to his country, it emerged on Friday.

Brian Hill, 30, died on 21 August when he was a passenger in a car which crashed in Alicante, the BBC reported.

A former soldier Hill, who was working on farms in the Alicante area, did not have insurance, and his mother Susan Hill, from Essex, UK, pleaded for help to raise the GBP 3,500 to bring his body back.

An anonymous donor from Norfolk has since come forward and pledged to cover the full cost.

Hill, 50, had pleaded with Spanish authorities to give her time to raise money before burying him.

British MEP Richard Howitt said he had spoken to officials in London, Madrid and Alicante, on behalf of the Hill family.

"I am satisfied that they're doing everything possible to help the family to get information," he added.

Brian's brother Stephen Hill said the family was "delighted" that a donor had offered to pay the costs.

He said the family had feared Brian would be buried in a pauper's grave in Spain, but funeral directors there had given assurances that he would not be buried or cremated without their permission.

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Subject: Spanish news