THE family of an Albanian man who died on the Bibby Stockholm barge have thanked the public after fundraising nearly double their target of £10,000 to repatriate his body.

Leonard Farruku, 27, was found unresponsive on board the accommodation vessel at Portland Port, Dorset, on December 12.

His sister Jola Dushku, 33, said they faced the “double tragedy” of his death and not being able to afford to bring his body back to Albania for a funeral.

She said: “It’s a strong demonstration of the people’s humanity in the UK compared to the Home Office not [being] willing to help for the body of my brother to be repatriated in Albania.”

An inquest has heard that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death, which a pathologist found was due to hanging.

It is understood that the Home Office only pays for repatriation following a death in detained detention, which it says does not cover the Bibby Stockholm as the residents are able to leave at will.

The fundraiser can be found here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/tphag-leonard-farruku?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unknown&utm_campaign=comms_lyc5+tphag-leonard-farruku