“What do you have there, a corpse?”

One man told Sky News how he joked with people struggling with a heavy suitcase if it contained a body – which was later found to contain human remains.

Giles Malone spoke of the horror that followed the terrible discovery on the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristoldescribing it as “sick and refreshing”.

The 61-year-old also told how those involved in moving the two suitcases, which were “bursting at the seams”, acted casually, took their time and even “giggled” at times.

Mr Malone and his wife Alison became unwitting witnesses to the disposal of the remains late on Wednesday night.

The couple, who live in Florida, had been in Clifton to visit Mr Malone’s father Roger.

They had just looked England’s semi-final win over Holland and were waiting for an Uber taxi feeling “very happy” near The Mall pub, a short distance from the bridge.

Mr Malone said: “After a few minutes I noticed a man and another man – a black man and a white man – carrying a suitcase across the road right towards us.

“They were struggling with her weight. I actually thought they might drop it in the middle of the road.

“I thought about going to help them, but something made me stop.

“And so they came and put the suitcase right at our feet.

“I told them, ‘It’s very difficult, what do you have there, a dead body?’ – just kidding, like you.

“We were feeling good, happy, so I made a joke and they didn’t answer me.

“Then they left her with us and went back down the street.

“I noticed a car across the street with the trunk open.”

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“All three were fighting”

Mr Malone added: “They then went back down the street with a third person who was a woman of about the same age – 25 to 35 – white female blonde hair with a ponytail.

“And he must have heard what I said, because he said, ‘These are the heaviest suitcases I’ve ever lifted, I suppose there might be a body in there.’

Referring to the second suitcase, Mr Malone said: “She was helping them pick it up. All three were fighting with her.”

He added: “The suitcases were very heavy, very battered and had straps around them like a crucifix.

“They were at their maximum, like they were bursting at the seams.”

When his Uber taxi arrived, the three had moved to get into it, but Mr Malone pointed out that it was his.

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“They didn’t seem to be in a hurry”

It wasn’t until the next day that they returned to see his father and found the bridge closed when he told them what they had seen and they contacted the police.

Mr Malone said: “When it started to sink in what happened, it’s really bad, scary and awful.

“We are praying for the families (of) whoever is involved because it is just horrible. We’re really shocked to be honest.”

Recalling the people’s behavior, he said: “They were kind of causal about it. They were very nonchalant. They didn’t really seem nervous or rushed.

“They were quite casual and even chuckled I think a couple of times when I made comments.”

“We don’t think it’s the same person as the TV call”

Police continue to search for a suspect following the discovery of human remains.

The force has released a series of images showing a black man with a beard wearing a black Adidas baseball cap, black jeans, a black jacket and black sneakers with thick white soles and carrying a black backpack.

But Mr. Malone didn’t think he was among the group they had been talking to.

He said: “We don’t think it’s the same person we saw.

“The black man didn’t have a beard, he was clean shaven. The man in the TV picture had a beard. Also, it looked like Hew was dressed differently.”

Police confirmed a post-mortem examination of the remains, which began on Thursday and continued on Friday.

The police have contacted the family of the missing man Jack O’Sullivan to “inform about the incident” but said “no parallels are actively being made”.

The 23-year-old was last seen on March 2.

The Clifton Suspension Bridge was reopened late on Thursday after council cleaning crews attended the scene.

The Grade I listed landmark, which straddles the Avon Gorge, was designed by renowned Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in 1864.