Family plea after dad found dead on school field and e-bike pulled from canal

The family of a man found dead at a school have made a fresh appeal so they can have a place to grieve and remember him.

Detectives believe they may be a step closer to solving the tragic mystery of how beloved dad Neil Thompson was discovered dead on the playing fields after his e-bike ended up in a canal. The body of the 45-year-old was found at Smestow Academy in Wolverhampton on January 19 by a horrified 11-year-old girl as she prepared for a PE lesson.

The investigation took another twist after the water-damaged bike was later removed from Smestow Canal and left propped against a bridge. Now, on what would have been Neil’s 46th birthday, his family want the person who hauled the bike from the water to come forward.

The force released pictures of the rust-covered e-bike and speaking on behalf of his bereaved relatives, West Midlands Police detective sergeant Amie Petford said: “His family are now asking the person who got the bike out of the water gets in touch so that they can have a place where they can go to grieve.

“The bike was rusty and appeared that someone had pulled it out of the canal and left it by a bridge at a lock so it is likely it would have been near there, but his family are hoping to know exactly where so they can lay flowers.”

Following his death earlier this year, Neil's family paid tribute, saying: "Our beautiful son, brother, father and friend Chuck, very much loved in the community of fishing , his one true love. His love for life and funny stories touched the lives of so many people."

An inquest into his death has heard that he died from aspiration of blood caused by traumatic facial injuries and a serious head injury and officers now believe he may have suffered the devastating injuries when he crashed his e-bike.

Police believe he left home on his bike at around 8.17pm on January 18 to visit a friend. He set off for home at around 1am the following morning, with CCTV capturing him riding along a canal towpath at 1.26am.

A dog walker later photographed him in the grounds of Smestow Academy at around 7.15am after spotting him while walking through Smestow Valley Nature Reserve. Police believe Neil was still alive at that point, but what happened in the hours between remains a mystery.

A post-mortem examination found significant injuries to the left side of his face, evidence of a traumatic brain injury and a fracture around the left eye socket. Consultant pathologist Dr Brett Lockyer said the injuries were consistent with blunt-force trauma and suggested Neil could have suffered them in a heavy fall, but could also have been assaulted.

However, police now believe he died as a result of injuries suffered when his e-bike crashed into the canal.

The father of the 11-year-old girl who discovered Neil's body previously revealed how the youngster was left "really shaken up" by the ordeal. He said: "My daughter phoned her mum up, screaming, and told her that she found a dead body by the goal posts on the field.

"She's only 11 years of age. They went out for PE and it was very foggy. It's terrible what she's had to see."