Man's body found in canal near Rugeley

The body of an elderly man has been found in a Staffordshire canal. Detectives are appealing for members of the public to help identify him.

Police pulled the body from the Trent and Mersey canal.

They found his body at 6.30am yesterday in the canal next to the Crown Inn in Handsacre, near Rugeley.

They were alerted after passing narrow-boaters made the shock discovery.

Police say the death is not being treated as suspicious, but the man was not carrying any identification and officers need help tracking down his family and friends.

He is described as white, slim, 5ft 8in tall, aged 60 to 70, with short grey hair.

Staffordshire Police spokesman Neil Spencer said the man's notable features include teeth in very poor condition and size six and a half shoes.

He was wearing a blue v-neck jumper, blue trousers and brown shoes.

"The man's death is not being treated as suspicious but we'd like to track down his friends and family as soon as possible," Mr Spencer added.

Staff at the Crown Inn, on The Green, say the man is not believed to have been a customer at the pub.

Anybody who knows the man is asked to contact the duty officer at Staffordshire Police's force control room on 0300 123 4455, quoting incident number 60 of August 8.