India murder police team replaced

Mr Bennett was found with £300 in cash and his passport next to him

A new police team has been brought in to investigate the death of a British man who was found murdered in India.

Stephen Bennett, 40, from Cheltenham, was found hanging dead from a tree in a village near Roha, 75 miles from Mumbai, on 11 December.

Four Indian men have been charged with his murder.

The local police have been replaced by detectives from the state police after Mr Bennett's parents were critical of the way they handled the inquiry.

Detectives initially said the father-of-two was killed after villagers mistook him for a sex attacker.

He had apparently frightened a local 25-year-old woman by calling at her home in the early hours of the morning.

The woman panicked and woke up two men, claiming she had been raped, and Mr Bennett was then killed. He had been beaten, throttled and hanged.

But the woman has since withdrawn her statement.

Mr Bennett's father Carol said he was unhappy with the investigation

In an answer phone message to his parents on 7 December, Stephen Bennett said: "I've done nothing wrong but for some reason I'm being intimidated."

He said he was travelling with two Indian men who were allegedly going to see a firework display in Mumbai.

"They seemed over friendly and from time to time they lapsed into their local language and their tone changed as they talked to one another so we were very anxious to try and get him to come back," said Stephen's father Carol Bennett.

The police are now looking into claims he may have been kidnapped.

Mr Bennett's wallet, which contained more than £300 in cash, was found next to his body, along with his passport.