Mystery man found injured in ditch on Christmas Eve identified by family
Police say the man's identity has been verified but mystery still surrounds how he ended up in the ditch on Christmas Eve.
Monday 25 December 2017 18:38, UK
An unknown man found seriously ill in a ditch by a dog walker on Christmas Eve has been identified after a relative came forward on Christmas Day.
They had recognised the clothes the man, in his 20s, had been wearing after police issued an appeal with photographs of his shirt, hoody, bottoms and trainers.
The passer-by alerted police after they discovered the man near Park Lane in Merrow, Surrey, at midday on Sunday.
He was then rushed to hospital by the South East Coast Ambulance Service, where he remains in a serious condition and is thought to be unable to communicate.
Police said the man's identity had been verified but mystery remains about how he ended up in the ditch.
Officers believe the incident is not suspicious.
Detective Inspector Jak Bowers said: "We have had a brilliant reaction from the public in such a short amount of time since issuing the appeal, for which we are hugely grateful.
"We will now be supporting this man's family and trying to establish exactly what happened to him.
"At this stage we have no reason to believe there are any suspicious circumstances involved in how the man came to be in the ditch."