THE funeral has been held of a hospital patient who was missing for three weeks before his body was found on rocks.

The funeral of John Pedelty, 59, took place at St Mark's Church, in his home town of Eldon, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham, followed by a cremation at Darlington.

Police appealed for help to find him when he went missing on November 11 after he walked out of Darlington Memorial Hospital.

Concerned friends from Canada and Poland appealed to people to help find him, but his body was found at Saltburn, east Cleveland, on November 30.

An inquest into his death was opened and adjourned in Middlesbrough on Friday.

Among the 40 people at the funeral were two of his Polish friends, Magda and Dorota Rusek, whom he met during a college trip to Cracow in the 1960s and kept in touch with.

When they heard Mr Pedelty had gone missing, they wanted to look after him to repay him for helping them when Communist Poland was cut off from the West.

The Reverend Keith Walker said the former town planner was known for his warmth and devotion to his friends, and was unique in his forgiving nature.

He said: "I am truly amazed how John gave so much thought and consideration to others, although he himself was carrying the heavy cross of his illness.

"We all tend to become selfish in our suffering, but not John. His own predicament seemed to increase his empathy to others."