Missing father's body found in Leicester canal

The body of an Indian man, who was missing for weeks, has been recovered from a canal in the city of Leicester, police said.

Paresh Patel, 48, had been last seen walking along Belgrave Road in the heart of Leicester on November 10.

Leicestershire Police said that they are not treating the death as suspicious.

"The man has been formally identified as 48-year-old Paresh who was last seen on the evening of Saturday November 10 when he left his home address. A post-mortem examination has been conducted. Further tests are being carried out. The death is not being treated as suspicious," Leicestershire Police said in a statement.

Patel's worried family had led the search for him, with his wife Kalpana issuing an emotional video message to urge him to return home.

Their sons, 12-year-old Kiyan and nine-year-old Harshal, also led a walk retracing the steps of their father while carrying a banner reading "Come Home Daddy".

Around 500 members of the local community had joined in with the family to retrace Patel's steps, Leicester Mercury reported.

Following the confirmation by the Leicestershire police, Patel's family issued a statement thanking the authorities.

"It is with the heaviest of hearts that we inform you that our Son, Husband, Father, Brother, Nephew, Cousin & Friend: Paresh has been taken from us. We wanted to thank you all with everything that we have, for every single moment of your time, that you gave to us, to help us find Paz," the family said in a statement.

Leicestershire Police had deployed extra resources to visit local residents and businesses and hand out thousands of leaflets and posters as part of the search operation.

An inquest is likely to be opened into Patel’s death, which will establish the cause and circumstances surrounding his death.