Police plea after burned body found in woodland

Police appealed for information today after the discovery of a badly burned body.

The body of a man was found by a member of the public in a wooded area behind Pennington Road in Leigh, Greater Manchester, shortly before 3pm on Monday.

Superintendent Julian Snowball, from Greater Manchester Police, said the area is slightly off the beaten track but near a public footpath in an area of wasteland where old fires had been lit, and is a place where people would sometimes go to drink or sleep rough.

Supt Snowball added: "It is not a murder inquiry at this moment in time.

"We have the body of a male found on wasteland, which is clearly suspicious, and consequently we are investigating the circumstances, but it is far too early to say whether it is a murder inquiry.

"If you do use that area, please come forward, contact the incident room or local officers and help us build up a picture of how long the body has been there."

The officer said a post mortem would be held this afternoon to establish the cause of death.

He said that police were attempting to identify the man by "non-visual means" due to the extent of the burns by examining property found on and around the body.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

PA