Cyber security expert Arjen Kamphuis may have smuggled himself aboard a freighter which left for Stavanger from Rognan around the time of his disappearance, the AD reported at the weekend.

Rognan locals say a freighter left the town around August 20, when Kamphuis disappeared and police have confirmed this is one of the leads they are following up, the AD said.

Some of Kamphuis’ things were found near the coastal town, among which his collapsible canoe and his identity papers. Kamphuis had been staying in nearby Bodo at the time.

Police said earlier that Kamphuis’ mobile telephone had been turned on on August 30 in the vicinity of Vikeså, about 50k from Stavanger in Norway. The device remained active for 20 minutes after which a German sim card was put in it.

Kamphuis’ girlfriend Ancilla van der Leest, told the Telegraaf:‘It sounds improbable but then everything about this story is improbable. He did tell me sometimes half-jokingly that if the Apocalypse came he could always make his getaway on a freight ship.’

The hunt for Kamphuis, 47, has been conducted by a police team known as Kripos, who specialise in organised crime and disappearances, Norwegian police said in a press release.

According to Dutch media he is an expert in cyber security who advises governments, journalists and human rights experts.