Neighbours' horror after elderly man found dead as murder investigation launched

Neighbours on a quiet cul-de-sac have told of their shock after a murder investigation was launched following the death of a elderly man. The victim, in his 80s, was found dead in a ground floor flat on Edgbaston Drive next to Old Trafford cricket ground on Wednesday morning.

A 51-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder, police said. Emergency services were called to the scene after a receiving a concern for welfare report. One neighbour said a carer raised the alarm after spotting the victim's front open.

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She added: "He'd usually sit outside having a cig, but he stopped coming out as much recently. He'd always let on to people walking past.

"He had a few conversations with my husband telling him how he'd built all the planters down the side of the house and put up the hanging baskets. He had carers coming in twice a day.

"I came outside at about 10am and saw the police and forensics turned, so I knew it was something serious. My heart sank when I heard he'd died.

"It's a big shock. He seemed like a nice man."

Another neighbour told how the victim's body was brought out on a stretcher and taken away in a private ambulance at around 7pm on Wednesday. In a statement on Thursday, a Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: "Yesterday morning at 9:30am, officers were called to a report of a concern for the welfare of a male in a property on Edgbaston Drive, Stretford.

"Officers attended and a man in his 80s was sadly confirmed dead at the scene. A 51-year-old man has since been arrested on suspicion of murder. He remains