Tests awaited on Owen's builder

Lower Soughton Hall is a Grade II-listed building

Police investigating the death of a builder involved in a £1.2m court case with footballer Michael Owen are awaiting the result of toxicological tests.

A post-mortem examination on the body of builder Michael Flynn, 51, failed to establish the cause of his death.

Mr Flynn had been locked in a battle with the star over work on his £1.6m mansion in Flintshire, north Wales.

He was pronounced dead in hospital on Thursday after being found by emergency services at his Market Drayton home.

A West Mercia Police spokesman said on Friday: "A post-mortem was held this morning, but it has not established the cause of death. We are now awaiting the results of tests."

Court order

The death - which police are officially treating as "unexplained" - has been referred to Telford Coroner, Michael Gwynne, who is expected to open an inquest on Tuesday.

Mr Flynn died at Telford's Princess Royal Hospital at about 0600 GMT on Thursday, an hour after emergency services were called to his home in Stoke Heath, near Market Drayton, Shropshire.

Michael Flynn was found dead at his home (Pic: Shrophire Star)

Liverpool striker Owen won a court order last month to freeze Mr Flynn's assets, pending a full hearing of the case in May.

Owen had claimed that work was allegedly not carried out on the star's home, the Grade II-listed £1.6m Lower Soughton Hall, near Mold.

Mr Flynn had always claimed he had done nothing wrong and would be vindicated by the legal action.

The case was brought by the footballer's firm Owen Promotions Ltd.

A spokesman for Owen's agents, SFX, issued a statement on Thursday night expressing shock and sadness at Mr Flynn's death.

Owen's mansion, Lower Soughton Hall, where he lives with his fiancée and baby daughter, dates back to the Elizabethan period but was largely re-built in 1865.

The footballer has already spent more than £500,000 on home improvements, including a swimming pavilion and a stable block.