Friend's skull found by fisherman

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A fisherman has netted a piece of skull belonging to his friend who went missing in the North Sea.

Brothers Brian Allison, 27, and Rob Temple, 34, from Sunderland, were lost when the Jann Denise II went down near the mouth of the River Tyne in 2004.

Their bodies were never found, but in December last year a piece of cranium was dredged up by a trawlerman who worked with the pair.

Forensic tests have now matched the bone's DNA to Mr Allison.

I was shocked to hear Brian had been found but, at the same time, it felt like a nice shock Roseann Allison

In December 2004, a month after the boat sank, the vessel was raised from the seabed off Tynemouth and inspected by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB).

A subsequent report concluded it had begun to take water due to its "poor structural condition".

No trace of the men was ever found until the North Shields' fisherman, who has not been named, found the small piece of cranium bone in his catch.

Carbon dating and forensic testing confirmed it belonged to Mr Allison, of the Fencehouses area.

Funeral service

His mother, Roseann Allison, was given the news on Tuesday, on what would have been Mr Temple's 37th birthday.

"I was shocked to hear Brian had been found but, at the same time, it felt like a nice shock. It felt like Brian had come home on Robert's birthday," she said.

"We hope this will give us some closure and we plan to have a funeral service for Brian once all the unofficial work is complete.

"It will give everyone a chance to say goodbye."