Her family’s lawyer earlier said they hoped the police would investigate possible foul play. They also thanked searchers, saying “Nora is at the heart of our family. She is the truest, most precious girl and we love her infinitely.”

Image Nora Anne Quoirin. Credit... Lucy Blackman Trust

Chief Mohamad said there were also some bruises on the girl’s legs, but they were not serious enough to have caused her death. Samples taken from her body will be sent to the chemistry department for further analysis, he said, adding that the girl’s family would now be able to take her home, if they wished.

“The cause of death was upper gastrointestinal bleeding due to duodenal ulcer, complicated with perforation,” he said. “It could be due to a lack of food for a long period of time and due to prolonged stress.”

Quoirin’s family has said she was not independent and would not wander off alone, because of her disabilities. The police believe she climbed out through an open window in the living room of the cottage, but have said they were investigating all possibilities, including the question of whether criminal activity played any role in her death.

The Paris prosecutor’s office on Wednesday said it had opened a preliminary investigation into the girl’s death, on potential charges of kidnapping and sequestration. The French authorities often open such investigations when French citizens are victims of or somehow involved in a potential crime abroad.