THE death of a homeless man is not being linked to an earlier attack where he was spray painted red.

Cleveland Police confirmed that his death was not being treated as suspicious following death in Eston Cemetery on Wednesday, September 12.

The man who is believed to be aged in his 30s has not yet been formally identified.

A post-mortem examination has been held and although the death is not being treated as suspicious police believe this man was the victim of a previous incident of assault which resulted in the man being sprayed with red paint.

The incident occurred near to Tesco Express on the High Street in Normanby and was reported to police on Sunday 9th September.

Detective Inspector Matt Hollingsworth said: “Police are aware of the speculation on social media regarding the cause of the man’s death but we are not linking the assault with his death.

“Officers are carrying out enquiries in relation to the assault outside of Tesco and would appeal for anyone with information or anyone who witnessed it to contact Cleveland Police on the non-emergency number 101 quoting 166668, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or www.crimestoppers-uk.org.”