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Cops launch murder hunt after barman tied to lamppost and burned alive

A MURDER victim was tied to a lamppost and set on fire in the early hours yesterday.

Detectives sealed off streets after the badly beaten and scorched body was discovered in an industrial estate in Cumnock, Ayrshire.

The victim was named locally as Stuart Walker, 29, former assistant manager at the Royal Hotel in Cumnock.

Locals said his charred remains were tied to the lamppost when he was found shortly before 5am by two members of the public at Caponacre Industrial Estate.

Strathclyde Police confirmed that the body bore scorch marks and horrific injuries which were making a positive identification difficult.

The man leading the investigation, Detective Inspector John Hogg, said: "We are still trying to identify the man and what happened to him although we know he did suffer horrible injuries.

"He is described as white, 20-30 years of age and of stocky build.

"But we have no further details at this time and have not yet identified him.

"The industrial estate is out of the way from the main routes but the units are used over the weekend, so there may be people about who saw something that may help our inquiries.

"There is also a housing estate nearby so again, we are asking local people if they saw anyone acting suspiciously."

One local resident told the Sunday Mail: "There was a disturbance last night in the town near the industrial estate involving young people and this could be linked to this man's death.

"We have been told that the victim was tied to a lamppost and then they tried to set him on fire.

"Some people are saying that they managed to burn him but not completely - and that he may have been beaten to death."

Friends on popular former Cumnock Academy pupil Stuart's Facebook page left messages mourning his loss last night.

Sarah Tomlin wrote: "R.I.P Stuart. You were one of the lovliest people I ever had the chance of knowing. You will be sadly missed.

"Hope they catch who did this."

Source