Police have arrested five teenagers on suspicion of manslaughter after the body of a missing man was discovered in a river.
Search parties had been looking for 22-year-old Luke Jobson, who disappeared on a night out in Yarm, Teesside, in the early hours of Saturday.
Cleveland Police said on Monday they had found a body in a river close to where Mr Jobson first went missing, later confirming it was that of the trainee engineer.
Police announced on Tuesday three people had come forward, while two others were later detained by police in connection with the incident.
The group, all males between the ages of 16 and 18, were arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. Four have since been released pending investigation, while one 18-year-old remains in custody for further questioning.
Detectives said one line of inquiry being followed was that Mr Jobson had been involved in an altercation with a group of men outside the Keys pub in Yarm shortly before his disappearance.
Dozens of volunteers had gathered in the town in an effort to search for Mr Jobson over the weekend and an appeal for information by his aunt received more than 60,000 shares on Facebook.
Asking for help, she wrote: “Luke needs to be found and needs to be home, fast. He is 22, he wouldn't hurt a fly, he is a popular, happy, calm lad that needs to be found ASAP.”
Search parties had to be warned by police to stay away from an area close to Yarm School to allow officers to conduct an investigation.
“Our thoughts are with Luke’s family and friends at this very difficult time and specially trained officers will continue to support them,” a Cleveland Police spokesman said on Tuesday.
“We are aware of various rumours and speculation circulating on social media but we would stress that sharing these further can be very distressing for Luke’s family as well as being unhelpful to our on-going inquiries.”
Additional reporting by PA
