Police question men seen with dead man in car park

Officers were searching for four Eastern European men spotted in the company of the 43-year-old victim after they got off a number 33 Lothian bus.

Today, detectives said they had traced “some” of the group but would not disclose whether they were considered  suspects.

The dead man was found by a member of the public in scrubland off Old Dalkeith Road at around 2.45pm on Sunday.

CCTV inquiries confirmed that the man got off the bus, near Little France Crescent, at around 10pm on Friday.

A postmortem yesterday revealed that the man had suffered “significant injuries” which led to his death.

Police have now formally identified the man but are trying to trace next of kin to inform them of his death, which is still being treated as “suspicious”.

Detective Chief Inspector David McLaren, from the Specialist Crime  Division Major Investigation Team, said: “The man was in the company of four males on Friday night. We have traced some of these men and spoken to them, but some are yet to be traced. We would encourage these remaining men to get in touch to assist us with our inquiries.

“It seems that they knew the man. We are looking to establish his movements and the movements of the group.

“We’ve established that he died as a result of the injuries he suffered. Our focus is establishing how he came by these injuries.”

DCI McLaren added: “We’re keen to speak to staff at the hospital. It’s obvious from the CCTV that a number of staff were going about at that time, perhaps finishing a shift or starting one. We would ask anyone who saw something suspicious at that time to get in touch.

“There may be staff, particularly those working around the A&E side of the building or using the car park opposite, that can help.

“People visiting patients, or patients themselves, might have seen the men at the time, and we want to trace passengers on the number 33 bus and on number seven buses, which were also passing in the street.”

DCI McLaren said it was “unlikely” that the man was visiting the hospital at the time he was injured.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Police Scotland on 101, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

NEW TOWN BODY IDENTIFIED

POLICE have named the man who died after being found unconscious in the heart of the New Town as Lee Hayburn.

Officers confirmed that the death of the 28-year-old, of no fixed abode, is still being treated as “unexplained”.

Mr Hayburn was found unconscious in a lane off Cumberland Street at around 5am on Friday.

He was taken to the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary but died despite showing no sign of any physical injury.

Witnesses later described seeing officers take blankets away from the street as a forensic examination of the scene was carried out.

A police spokesman said: “Inquiries into his death, which is being treated as unexplained, are ongoing.

“Anyone with any information should contact police on 101, or make an anonymous report through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”