The death of a man whose body was found in a derelict North Yorkshire house is not thought to be suspicious.

Police were called to the house in Whitby on Saturday afternoon and initially said they were treating the death as “unexplained”.

Last night a North Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “Enquiries have shown that it is believed to be the body of a local man.

"There is nothing to suggest that there are any suspicious circumstances at this time and a file is being prepared on behalf of the coroner. We are not expecting to be in a position to release his identity for some time.”

Police were called to the empty building in Broomfield Terrace shortly after 2pm on Saturday by workmen carrying out renovation work.

They said the body appeared to have been there for some time.