A clay model of the head of a man whose remains were found in a Lancashire pond has been unveiled.

Detectives believe the man, who had suffered severe head injuries, was probably murdered.

His body was dumped near Charnock Richard and is thought to have lain undiscovered for up to a year.

The model of his head, created by experts at Manchester University, was put on show on Tuesday by Lancashire police.

Deformity

Detectives now know the man, who was of Asian origin, had a deformity to his legs that was probably a result of a childhood disease.

A computer image of the victim has been produced

His remains were found on 26 July this year, by a woman who was walking her dog in a field off Back Lane in Charnock Richard.

In September a computer-generated image of the man was created by a team at Glasgow University's Human Identification Unit.

At the time Detective Superintendent Mick Turner, who is leading the investigation, said murder was the only explanation for the man's death.

'Secreted'

Mr Turner said: "There are a number of reasons why I believe this.

"There was no clothing at the scene, no vehicle abandoned nearby, no personal effects on the body and it appeared to have been deliberately secreted."

More than 30 officers are working on the case, with a dedicated incident room set up at Chorley police station.

It was thought the victim was aged between 20 and 30 when he died. He was between 5ft 6ins and 5ft 8ins tall and of slender build.

There has been no exact cause of his death established.

Appeals for witnesses have been distributed in Urdu, Punjabi, Gujarati and Hindi.