A 23-year-old man who died at a North Yorkshire caravan park may have been assaulted in the hours leading up to his “sudden and unexplained” death.

Part of The Ranch caravan park, near Cliffe, Selby, was cordoned off yesterday and police were turning away all visitors to the site as they carried out their investigation.

The man, believed to be from the Selby area, was found unconscious in a caravan at the park at 3.12am yesterday.

The emergency services were called but despite the efforts of paramedics, he was pronounced dead at the scene.

A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police said: “One of the lines of inquiry that the investigation team is examining was that the man was possibly assaulted on Saturday night or during the early hours of Sunday prior to going to bed.”

He appealed for witnesses to contact North Yorkshire Police or Crimestoppers anonymously.

Officers were on site yesterday, handing out leaflets appealing for anyone who may have seen the man attacked on Saturday evening or Sunday morning to come forward.

People resident on the park could be seen talking in small groups or moving among the caravans while police officers carried out detailed investigations.

A cordon had been placed around several of the lodges.

The park is managed by Ronald Finney.

The operators in charge of the The Ranch caravan park which has a mixture of static and touring caravan pitches along with holiday lodges did not wish to comment when contacted by The Press.