Relative identifies mystery man discovered unconscious in ditch

A mystery man found seriously ill in a ditch has been identified after a relative was located on Christmas Day.

The man, thought to be in his 20s, was stumbled upon by a dog walker near Park Lane, Merrow, Surrey, at midday on Christmas Eve, police said.

He was taken to hospital by the South East Coast Ambulance Service, where he remains in a serious condition.

Surrey Police said a relative of the man came forward in response to a public appeal, including pictures of his clothes, which was issued on Sunday night.

His identity has now been verified, but officers are still working to establish how he ended up in the ditch.

The incident is not believed to be suspicious.

Detective Inspector Jak Bowers said: "We have had a brilliant reaction from the public in such a short amount of time since issuing the appeal, for which we are hugely grateful.

"We will now be supporting this man's family and trying to establish exactly what happened to him.

"At this stage we have no reason to believe there are any suspicious circumstances involved in how the man came to be in the ditch."