THE MYSTERY of the man found dead in a damp North Yorkshire cellar of a homeless hostel 10 years ago has been reopened by police.

The unsolved case was re-opened in 2015, and as the 10th anniversary of the discovery of his body approaches, North Yorkshire Police are appealing for new information in a bid to catch whoever was responsible for his death.

Robert Pride-McLeod’s body was discovered in the basement of a homeless hostel in Robert Street, Harrogate, on January 21, 2007, and detectives at the time of the initial investigation believed he had been assaulted shortly before his death.

Police reopened the case in 2015 and made a fresh appeal, which generated new information but did not lead to any arrests – but detectives believe there are still people in the Harrogate community that have vital information about what happened, and that are yet to have shared what they know.

A specialist cold case team from North Yorkshire Police and Cleveland Police’s joint Major Investigation Team is supporting the investigation into Mr Pride-McLeod’s death.

A forensic review is ongoing and police are conducting a systematic review of all material recovered from the scene. Items are undergoing forensic tests that were not available during the original investigation.

Detective Inspector Mark Pearson of the Cleveland and North Yorkshire Major Investigation Team worked on the initial investigation in 2007 and is now involved in the cold case review.

He said: “Ten years have passed since we had to break the devastating news to Mr Pride-McLeod’s family that he had been found dead and alone in a cellar. I’m convinced that there are still people out there who hold the key to a number of unanswered questions.”

Mr Pride-McLeod was made homeless on Friday, 12 January 2007 and was given a room on the first floor of the hostel.

The following Monday morning, his room was checked and he had gone. Despite police appeals for information, nobody has ever come forward to say they saw Mr Pride-McLeod since he arrived at the hostel. He was found dead later that week.

DI Pearson added: “At the time of the initial enquiry people may have been reluctant, for whatever reason, to come forward. But people’s lives change considerably in the course of a decade and they may now realise that sharing information about Mr Pride-McLeod’s death is the right thing to do.

“We’re as determined as we were 10 years ago to get answers. Someone will know what happened in the final moments of Mr Pride-McLeod’s life and I’d urge them to get in touch.”

If you have any information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, please contact North Yorkshire’s Major Investigation Team on 01609 643 147. If you prefer not to give your name, Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.