A FRENCH connection could hold the key to the identity of the man with no name, with Interpol set to tackle the baffling case.

And North police have admitted for the first time that they have not ruled out that the poncho-clad cowboy look-alike was murdered.

However, three months after he was found, suicide is still the favourite theory, the 40-45-year-old man inexplicably shooting himself with an ancient replica revolver after finding a spectacular place to die.

His body was discovered in June by two hill walkers on remote 3756ft high Ben Alder. It is thought he had been there for about six months. The .44 calibre weapon was lying near his left hand. It is believed if he shot himself, he used his thumb to pull the trigger.

The unusual weapon, an 1858 army Remington revolver, fired lead balls and resembles the old long-barrelled Colts of the Wild West cowboy era.

A gunpowder flask, kept in a cigar box, was found nearby.

A post mortem examination revealed he died from a chest wound, but there were no other pointers to his identity, or if he actually delivered the fatal shot.

The man was 5ft 6in tall, of slim or average build with medium/ dark short brown hair. He was wearing a three-quarter length green waterproof jacket with a hood and poncho attached with a brown corduroy collar, black denim jeans and a brown belt. He was also wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, woollen oatmeal coloured crew-neck jumper and two short-sleeved white vests.

A railway timetable for the Glasgow-Fort William route was also in the rucksack.

But months of determined detective work by Sergeant Calum MacRae in Aviemore has revealed other clues which he hopes will help Interpol.

He said yesterday: ``The replica hand-gun was made in Italy, but is freely available to purchase over the counter at French supermarkets. His jacket, sleeping bag, trousers and watch also originate from France.''

The dead man also seems to have gone to extraordinary lengths to hide his identity. All but one of the labels on his clothes were removed and he had no personal papers.

The police have fingerprints which will assist them if the man has a criminal record, and dental records are about to be dispatched to Interpol.

Sergeant MacRae went on: ``Our UK inquiries have drawn a blank. But we now have another line of inquiry in France.''

The mountain already has a suicide association.

The mystery man may have stayed a night in lonely Ben Alder Cottage, a bothy lying in the shadow of the ben - and reputedly haunted by the ghost of an old stalker who hung himself from the rafters many years ago.