{"id":593470,"date":"2025-11-25T19:58:18","date_gmt":"2025-11-25T19:58:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/593470\/"},"modified":"2025-11-25T19:58:18","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T19:58:18","slug":"off-duty-police-officer-28-is-found-dead-in-bristol-harbour-after-night-out-with-friends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/593470\/","title":{"rendered":"Off-duty police officer, 28, is found dead in Bristol harbour after night out with friends"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tributes have been paid to a 28-year-old off-duty police officer who was found dead in Bristol after disappearing on a night out.<\/p>\n

Rehaan Akhtar was out with friends when he was last seen in the early hours of Sunday near the Arnolfini art gallery, which sits adjacent to\u00a0Bristol Harbourside.<\/p>\n

After he went missing and the alarm was raised, authorities launched a search for him and Mr\u00a0Akhtar was recovered from the water by divers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr\u00a0Akhtar, who is from the Welsh town Llanelli, roughly an hour and a half from Bristol, was a police constable for South Wales Police. He had initially joined the force as a police community support officer (PCSO) in Cardiff in October 2021 before becoming a PC based in\u00a0Swansea in September last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Chief Constable Jeremy Vaughan said he was ‘shocked’ and ‘saddened’ at the police officer’s sudden death and offered his condolences to his family.<\/p>\n

He added: ‘During his time with South Wales Police he served our communities with pride and professionalism as both a PCSO and a police officer.<\/p>\n

‘I know he was greatly respected and liked by his colleagues and those he met as part of his day-to-day duties.<\/p>\n

\"Rehaan <\/p>\n

Rehaan Akhtar was out with friends when he was last seen in the early hours of Sunday near the Arnolfini art gallery<\/p>\n

‘On behalf of South Wales Police, I offer our heartfelt condolences to all of those impacted by his passing.’<\/p>\n

Avon and Somerset Police said Mr Akhtar’s death was not being treated as suspicious and his family were being offered specialist support.<\/p>\n

‘We keep them in our thoughts during this incredibly difficult time,’ a spokesman said.<\/p>\n

‘We are treating this death as unexplained, but not suspicious, and will be preparing a file for the coroner. We would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal.’<\/p>\n

Described as a ‘talented footballer’, he played for\u00a0football team Calsonic Kansei Swiss Valley AFC (CKSV), who play in the West Wales Premier League<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The club have now paid tribute to him, saying: ‘It is with great sadness that we share the devastating news of the passing of Rehaan Akhtar.<\/p>\n

‘Rehaan was a committed first team player, a passionate footballer, and a valued presence both on and off the pitch. He was a friend to many, known for his positivity, determination, and love for the game.<\/p>\n

‘Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with Rehaan’s family, friends and all who knew him during this difficult time. He will be deeply missed by everyone at CKSV and beyond.’<\/p>\n

Rehaan’s former club, Trallwm Tigers FC, also said: ‘We’re deeply saddened to hear about the passing of former Trallwm FC player Rehaan Akhtar and current player of CKSV AFC.<\/p>\n

‘Raheen was not only a talented footballer but a kind and humble person. He gave everything on the pitch and brought warmth, positivity, and commitment off it.<\/p>\n

‘His presence made a lasting impact on everyone who had the privilege of playing alongside him.<\/p>\n

‘Our deepest condolences to his family and all who knew him. Very sad times and a such a bright life taken far too soon. RIP Rehaan Akhtar.’<\/p>\n

Llangennech AFC also said: ‘We’re deeply saddened to hear of Rehaan’s passing. We send our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, teammates and all at CKSV during this incredibly difficult time.<\/p>\n

‘A much-loved young man taken far too soon. Our thoughts are with you all.’<\/p>\n

Formal identification is due to take place and Rehaan’s family are being supported by specialist officers.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Police said: ‘We are saddened to report that a body has been recovered from the water during the search for missing 28-year-old Rehaan.<\/p>\n

‘While formal identification has not yet taken place, we have updated his family and they are being offered support by a specialist family liaison officer.’<\/p>\n

He is described as being roughly 5ft 11ins tall, of muscular build with short dark hair, a dark beard and moustache. He was last seen wearing a black Levi’s top, grey cargo trousers and a navy jumper.<\/p>\n

An inquest is due to be held.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tributes have been paid to a 28-year-old off-duty police officer who was found dead in Bristol after disappearing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":593471,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8818],"tags":[381,748,92,393,4884,12,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-593470","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bristol","8":"tag-bristol","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-dailymail","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-news","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115612110437852220","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/593470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=593470"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/593470\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/593471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=593470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=593470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=593470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}