Birkenhead bonfire body: Two more arrests

Nov 6 2007 By Dave Higgerson

Birkenhead bonfire death

TWO MORE arrests have been made by police investigating the death of a man found in the dying embers of a bonfire.

The body of Stephen Croft, 34, was discovered by firefighters in Wirral, Merseyside, after a member of the public reported the Guy Fawkes Night blaze.

As crews arrived to extinguish the bonfire, on grassland at the junction of Borough Road and Whetstone Lane in Birkenhead, his body was found in the embers.

He had suffered head injuries and severe burns.

A 13-year-old boy was arrested this morning and remains in custody for questioning. Police said tonight a 19-year-old man and a 17-year-old man have also been arrested.

Police say a post mortem is being carried out to establish the cause of death.

Officers want to speak to people who were in the area between midnight and 1am today, when the discovery was made.

A police spokeswoman said: “This matter is being treated as an unexplained death and it is not yet a murder investigation.

“We have now completed initial forensic examination of the scene and we expect to begin speaking to the boy in the coming hours.”

She described as “nonsense” reports from witnesses which claimed that Mr Croft was attacked by a gang of youths who threw a flaming piece of wood at him.

“At this stage we will not speculate about how the victim came to be on the bonfire or whether he was alive or dead when he came into contact with the bonfire, she added.

“A lot of these questions will be answered by the pathologist when he carries out the post mortem.”

Tracey Roberts, who lives opposite the scene, said many people had stopped to look at the bonfire.

She said: “Over the night a lot of people stopped to watch but it wasn’t the biggest fire and the fireworks were just what you can buy in any shop.

“It was all over, I thought, about 10pm and people drifted off home.

“I heard the fire brigade arrive later to put the fire out but not long afterwards the police came too.”

At an address in Birkenhead thought to be Mr Croft’s home, a man declined to comment on the tragedy.