An Indonesian family’s dream of being reunited with a loved one who disappeared during the 2004 Indonesia tsunami has been dashed after a DNA test revealed that a doppelganger found in a mental institution is not the same person.

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami struck on Boxing Day and around 230,000 people lost their lives, making it one of the biggest natural disasters ever.

The family of police officer Abrip Asep said he was on duty when the tsunami and earthquake hit Indonesia’s westernmost province of Aceh on 26th December 2004.

Abrip was reported as missing and was later declared dead.

However, the family believed Abrip had resurfaced after photos were shared on a social media family chat group of a man who has spent the last 16 years in a psychiatric institute.

The man appeared to bear a strong resemblance to the missing cop and the family got their hopes up.

However, the local police carried out a DNA test and the results ruled out any family ties between the patient and Asep’s family.

Police spokesperson Legowo Hamijaya said: “There was no DNA match. So we don’t know who is the family of the man we thought was Asep.”

The family said they were disappointed by the outcome, but accepted the test result.

Family representative Hidarsel said: “We were sure that we were right, but the test showed otherwise.”

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami was one of the worst natural disasters in history, killing around 220,000 people. Indonesia’s westernmost province of Aceh was the worst hit region, recording some 170,000 deaths and 38,000 missing people.