On Saturday 8th October police were called to Claremont Avenue, situated within half a mile of the University, as a man’s body had been found outside a house.

Students living on the road awoke to a white tent obscuring the view of a neighbour’s back yard and a police cordon blocking it off.

Detective Inspector Phil Jackson, of Leeds District CID, said: “At 10:30am on Saturday October 8, police were contacted by the ambulance service who were attending an address in Claremont Avenue, Leeds, following a report of a man being found collapsed in the rear yard of the house.

“Officers attended and paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene. His death appears to be the result of a fall and is not being treated as suspicious. The Coroner’s office has been informed and an inquest was opened and adjourned yesterday.

“He has been identified as Oliver Mark Grayson, aged 34, from the Hunslet area of Leeds.

“Due to the circumstances at the scene we have recorded an attempted burglary in relation to the incident and that investigation has been finalised.”

Originally, some believed that a neighbour could have fallen from a window. Sarah Mansell, a second year Food Science and Nutrition student who lives on Claremont Avenue, said “There was quite a lot of confusion about who it actually was – at first we thought it was our neighbour, Darrell, so we were very shocked and sad when we thought that it was one of our neighbours that died. That was a scary thought.

“When we found out that it was a burglar and not one of our neighbours, I guess we were kind of relieved that it wasn’t our neighbour, but of course still sad that someone did die right next to us.”

Law student James Lazenby was shocked by the events and said he found out when he “went to take the bins out and a private ambulance pulled up to the tent and pulled out a body bag.”

Polly Hatcher and Elise Middleton

(Image: The Guardian)