The 34-year-old man arrested in Portugal in connection with the disappearance of two teenage Dutch girls has been released from custody.

The girls, both aged 16, sparked an international search when they flew to Spain last week, leaving their phones behind in Bergen op Zoom and taking only light luggage.

The Netherlands had asked for the man to be extradited to the Netherlands but the extradition request did not meet European guidelines, Portuguese media are quoted as saying.

The man, who has dual Dutch and Moroccan nationality, lived in Albufeira and says he alerted the authorities to the girls’ presence in the resort. He was with the girls when police came to pick them up.

The girls have since been flown back to the Netherlands and reunited with their families. The motive for their disappearance remains unclear.