A homeless man has been crushed to death in a bin lorry in Manchester.

The 31-year-old had climbed into a rubbish bin to sleep, but it was loaded into a waste collection lorry which automatically crushes the contents.

His body was found when the vehicle emptied its load at a rubbish site in Ardwick at 1130 GMT on Wednesday.

A post-mortem examination revealed the man died from asphyxiation as he was crushed with the rubbish, said Greater Manchester Police.

The incident is not being treated as suspicious and police have passed the case to the coroner.

Hypothermia theory

Det Supt Julian Ross, from Greater Manchester Police, said: "It would appear this man was homeless and climbed into the bin to escape the bad weather and find somewhere warmer and dryer to sleep.

"This was a tragic accident and those involved are very upset that this man has died in this way."

According to police it is unclear if the victim was suffering hypothermia which meant he was unable to alert bin men that he was inside, said police.

Police are urging homeless people to find a place to sleep out of the cold to avoid more deaths.

"Sadly, as in this case, sleeping in a bin can lead to this sort of tragic accident and someone losing their life."