Grim find as death comes to the New Town

Published on Tuesday 4 August 2009 22:04

IT IS a riddle which confounded workers and homeowners in the heart of Edinburgh's New Town.

A twisted body found outside a basement flat in one of the most affluent areas of the capital yesterday triggered a major police investigation – and a host of unanswered questions.

The man's body was spotted by a passer-by lying on the steps leading to the basement garden of a townhouse on North Castle Street, in the city's New Town, at about 7am yesterday.

Detectives, who described the body as being found at an "awkward" angle, refused to disclose if foul play was suspected – or if the man found dead had simply taken a tumble.

There are suspicions that the body had been lying undisturbed for several hours.

Blue and white police tape was swiftly strung up around the unoccupied five-storey townhouse at 57 North Castle Street, before workers were greeted with the sight of white-suited forensics officers combing the scene.

The grim discovery was made only two doors down from the Spanish consulate, in the capital and just around the corner from the Oxford Bar, made famous by its appearances in Ian Rankin's best-selling Inspector Rebus crime novels.

The entire street, which runs off George Street, was closed for several hours to allow police to examine the body and hunt for clues to the cause of death, while workers and local residents looked on.

Door-to-door inquiries were carried out at a number of neighbouring homes and businesses throughout the day. Forensics officers were seen dusting the railings outside the townhouse, looking for fingerprints.

Officers were last night still trying to identify the man and insisted the death was as yet unexplained. A post-mortem examination is expected to be carried out over the next few days. A police spokeswoman would only say the force was following "a positive line of inquiry".

Detective Inspector George Thomson said investigations were ongoing, but that it was too early to speculate on the cause of death. "At 7am, a member of the public found the body of a male lying in the front garden of premises on North Castle Street. Emergency services arrived at the scene but I can confirm that the man was deceased when found," said DI Thomson.

"I can tell you the man was lying at a particularly awkward angle. It is too early to tell whether this was an accident."

Jeannie Whyte, from estate agents George Goldsmith, whose offices are opposite the scene, arrived at work to find the street cordoned off. "You never think something like this is going to happen outside your work. It brings it home that you never know how safe you are."

Chris Rourke, managing director of the IT consultancy User Vision, based next door, said: "It is unsettling that something untoward like this would happen in this area. It will be a relief to know what the cause of the incident was."

A worker at a neighbouring sandwich shop said: "It's a pretty affluent area. You don't expect this kind of thing around here. I think it's more likely someone has just fallen down the stairs."

Forensics teams removed items from the scene at about 2pm, before the body was taken away ten minutes later.