Thurnscoe murder victim named as fourth man arrested

Stafford Garner (46) was found by paramedics at his home in Monsal Street, Thurnscoe, at around 4.40pm last Thursday (April 2).

He was taken to hospital but died from his injuries on Sunday.

A post-mortem examination gave the preliminary cause of death as a head injury but a police spokeswoman said this was "subject to further investigations".

"Four men have now been arrested on suspicion of murder," she added.

"Two of these men, aged 31 and 41, had been initially arrested on suspicion of assault prior to the victim’s death.

"Two further men, aged 29 and 28, were arrested on suspicion of murder this week."

The 29-year-old and 41-year-old have both been bailed pending further enquiries.

The 28-year-old and 31-year-old remained  in police custody.

Det Insp Rob Platts, who is overseeing the investigation, said: “We have specially trained officers currently supporting Mr Garner’s family, who are understandably devastated at losing Stafford.

“They have questions, quite rightly, about what happened to their loved one and how he came to be gravely injured.

“I appreciate that while many of us have been staying indoors as a result of government guidance last week, there may still be people out there yet to make contact with officers who know something about what happened to Mr Garner.

“If you live locally and saw Mr Garner in the days before he was found, we’d like to hear from you. If you have had a conversation with someone who is holding information about this incident, we want to hear from you too."

Det Insp Platts urged anyone who may have any details, no matter how small or insignificant, to come forward to help officers understand how Mr Garner came to be fatally injured. 

Call 101 quoting incident number 494 of April 2, or access the Major Incident Public Portal (MIPP) site at https://mipp.police.uk/operation/14SY20B03-PO1

You can also contact independent charity Crimestoppers via www.crimestoppers-uk.org or call 0800 555 111.