THE body found off The Needles last Saturday has been confirmed as that of missing man Matthew Doyle.

Isle of Wight Police confirmed the news and have informed Mr Doyle's family.

The police were assisted by Yarmouth RNLI and HM Coastguard with the recovery of the body.

Mr Doyle's family were informed of the find, although formal identification had not taken place at that point.

Mr Doyle, 40, was last seen on Monday, May 25, and was last spoken to by telephone later that evening.

A widespread search was launched for him after a bag of his belongings were found on Yarmouth Pier.

A post mortem is to take place next week.

The death is not being treated as suspicious and a file is being prepared for the Coroner.

A police spokesperson said: "We would like to thank everyone who has offered to help with searches for missing Matthew, and who has shared the appeals and supported our investigation."