Mystery surrounds pensioner injuries

Police in Durham police say a major investigation into how a Darlington pensioner became critically ill has been wound down.

After a massive operation officers were unable to find any evidence to support claims that Brian Sykes had been repeatedly assaulted.

He was found collapsed in his Darlington flat by police officers, and a team of 24 detectives have been working on the case for nine days.

Their investigation started when Brian Sykes was taken to hospital, where he remains critically ill.

Mr Sykes, 65, is a colourful and flamboyant character seen regularly around Darlington town centre, and is now in the intensive care unit of Bishop Auckland General Hospital.

He had told friends that he had been assaulted three times in one day, but extensive enquiries have failed to find any evidence of this.

Police have studied hours of CCTV footage, carried out door to door interviews, and handed out hundreds of leaflets appealing for information.

Now a medical expert has told them Mr Sykes' injuries may have been caused by lying on his face for several days, and by falls which occurred in hospital.

The police have yet to speak to Mr Sykes, who is still unconscious.