A BODY has been recovered by police investigating the disappearance of missing Manchester man Keano Byrne.
Mr Byrne, 26, was reported missing on Monday, March 27, having last been seen a day earlier walking towards Reddish Vale with another man.
On Friday, specialist teams of GMP officers located a body in the water at Reddish Vale Country Park.
While formal identification has yet to take place, police say they are now treating the disappearance of Gorton man Mr Byrne as a murder inquiry and have arrested two men.
Come to harm
"Clearly this is an upsetting time for Keano's family and they are being kept informed of the ongoing investigation as well as being supported by specialist officers," said Detective Chief Inspector Liz Hopkinson, of GMP's Major Incident Team.
"Specialist teams from GMP have been searching for Keano and trying to establish what happened to him since he was reported missing.
"It is early stages of the investigation but we are determined to find out what happened to Keano so his family can have the answers they deserve."
Shortly after Mr Byrne was reported missing, police established that he may have come to harm.
Investigators identified several lines of enquiry that resulted in the arrest of two men, aged 26 and 30, who have since been released under investigation.
Appeal
DCI Hopkinson confirmed the investigation into what happened to Mr Byrne was now a murder inquiry.
"Formal identification has yet to take place but officers are treating his disappearance as a murder inquiry following information revealed during the investigation into his disappearance," she said.
"We are asking for anyone who was in the Reddish Vale area in the early hours of Sunday, March 26 between 3.30am and 6.30am, or who may have seen Keano after the time he went missing, to please contact police.
"No matter how small the information may seem, it may help us to piece together what has happened.
"We are looking for CCTV, dashcam footage, images, or any accounts of suspicious behaviour around that date as this will bring us one step closer to finding out what happened to Keano and help us understand the full circumstances."
Anyone with information is asked to contact GMP’s Major Incident team via 0161 856 6377 or online at www.gmp.police.uk, quoting log 762-270323.
