THREE men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after police were alerted to the body of a man in Taunton's French Weir Park on Wednesday morning.

Police are appealing for anyone who was in the area between 8am and 8:30am on July 17 to get in contact if they "saw or heard anything suspicious" or have doorbell, CCTV or phone footage which could be relevant.

A statement from Avon and Somerset Police reads: "We’ve made arrests following the unexplained death of a man in Taunton.

"Three men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after officers were called to French Weir Park at around 8.30am on Wednesday 17 July.

"Officers arrived at the scene in less than 10 minutes and located the body of a man in the water.

"He was sadly declared dead at the scene and officers are now prioritising enquiries to identify him and inform his next of kin, however we do believe he lived locally.

"A forensic post-mortem examination will be held in due course to establish the cause of the man’s death.

"Neighbourhood Chief Inspector Rebecca Wells-Cole said: “We’re making every effort to identify the victim as soon as we can to update his next of kin and give them the support they need.

“We know this incident will cause upset and distress in the community. At this time we’re treating it as an isolated incident and are not aware of any risk to the wider public.

“Officers with the Taunton Neighbourhood Policing Team will be carrying out high-visibility patrols in the park and surrounding area and we encourage any members of the public to approach them if they have any questions or concerns.

“A cordon will remain in place while enquiries are carried out at the scene and we’d like thank the public for their understanding while this important work takes place.”

The force added: "If you were in the area between 8pm and 8.30am and saw or heard anything suspicious, or have doorbell, CCTV or mobile phone footage which would be of relevance to our investigation, please contact us."