The man arrested and quizzed by detectives hunting the killer of Sutton-on-the-Forest man David Williamson has been told he is no longer under suspicion.

The 27-year-old local man was due to report to York police station on Monday next week, but his solicitor has said he received a letter from North Yorkshire Police on Tuesday telling him he was released from bail and that no further action would be taken.

The man, who does not want to be identified, was arrested on April 1, six days after Mr Williamson, 58, was found on a roadside path a few hundred yards from his home in Sutton-on-the-Forest. He had suffered a fractured skull after being struck on the back of the head with a blunt instrument.

The man's solicitor, Jackie Knights, from York firm Harrowell Shaftoe, told how her client and his family had been through a two-month nightmare while knowing he was innocent.

She said: "It has been a frightening experience for him and his family, but now they are feeling complete relief. He has told me they will now be able to sleep again at night.

"He always knew that he was innocent, but he was worried that things were going to get out of hand and he had that fear hanging over his head for nearly two months."

She said she was convinced of her client's innocence from the moment he was first interviewed by police.

"It was obvious to me that he did not have anything to do with Mr Williamson's death," she said.

Detectives have complained of a "shocking" lack of information coming from people in Sutton-on-the-Forest and Huby, where Mr Williamson had been at the Star Inn the night before he was found.

Referring to their appeals in the Evening Press, she said: "I don't know how the police can keep somebody on bail and yet be saying in the local paper that they still don't have any leads."

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "We can confirm the man arrested in connection with the David Williamson case has been released from bail. Our inquiries are still continuing."

Updated: 10:40 Friday, June 01, 2001