Telford murder probe: Neighbours pay warm tributes to a 'kind-hearted friend'

The neighbours spoke of a warm-hearted, friendly man - named locally as Nigel Austin - who was found dead at his bungalow in the close knit, friendly Radnor Court, in Leegomery, on Wednesday morning.

Good friend Carole Meyrick, 63, said: "He was lovely, I used to speak to him in the garden and we always used to have a chat.

"It is a dreadful thing, you just do not expect this kind of thing in this area, it is a really quiet place to live."

Mr Austin, a pallet company driver was "looking forward to his retirement" and was a "really good neighbour", she said.

"I last saw him when I went to the local shops and he offered me a lift home. I said no, but I wish I had said yes," added the part-time Tesco employee.

"I knew him for quite a while and considered him a good friend, and always used to have a chat with him. He always used to pop his head out and say what he was doing," she said.

"He was very polite, kept birds, and loved it around here. It was quite a shock and you don't expect it around here."

Neighbour and young mum Amanda Stila, 31, said she had kept waking up in the night thinking of the shock of what happened. She said another neighbour had called the ambulance following noise from Mr Austin's home.

"He was a nice neighbour," she said. "We would take in packages for him and he would take in packages for us. He would always say: 'Hello, how are you?'

"It is a tragic thing and I can't believe it has happened. I woke up so many times last night thinking about it. It is good to see the police around to help us feel safe.

"I would wake up and look out of the window and see the police cars with their lights on, and think 'thank God".

She had known Mr Austin since 2019, and said they had "never really had any problems".

"He was really nice and what has happened was horrible," she added.

West Mercia Police say they were called to the property early on Wednesday morning where a man in his 60s had sadly died.

"His next of kin have been informed and our thoughts are with them at this difficult time," said a spokesman.

On Wednesday evening a 36-year-old man from Telford was arrested on suspicion of murder and is in police custody.

The spokesman added: "Local residents may be aware of a continued police presence at the property while we conduct our investigation".

"We would like to reassure the local community that we believe this to be an isolated incident and that there is no further risk to the public."

Police have also appealed for information from anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious in the area on Tuesday afternoon.

People with information can visit the Tell Us About page at westmercia.police.uk, quoting incident number 148i of 28 September 2022. You can also call 101 and quote the same reference number.

Information can be given anonymously by calling the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or by visiting crimestoppers-uk.org