An Italian teenager has been found dead in her London home after complaining of suffering from headaches and feeling unwell.

Benedetta Podesta, known as ‘Bibi’, reportedly moved to London to improve her English a few months ago.

The 18-year-old from Genoa is understood to have been working in a pub in Tottenham Court Road but asked for a few days off after complaining of a headache and feeling unwell.

Ms Podesta’s mother reportedly contacted her daughter’s friends after she had not heard from the teenager for four days, asking them to check on her. She was found dead in her home by a friend on Saturday morning, the Daily Mail reported.

Police in London are treating the death as unexplained at this early stage, while officers in Genoa have reportedly opened an investigation into the case.

An autopsy is due to be carried out on Tuesday in the capital.

The teenager’s father, Claudio Podesta, told Italian media: “To have your children die before you do is a horrendous thing that should never happen.

“We are destroyed. And whatever comes out of the autopsy hardly matters. Bibi was a wonderful girl, full of life. We are destroyed,” he said.

Her ex-boyfriend Lukas Hatarik, said: “If we hadn’t split up, perhaps she would still be alive,” according to Il Secolo XIX.