Police investigating the unexplained death of a warehouse worker are appealing for help in tracing the last person he spoke to.

Jack Taylor, of Hogarth Road, Dagenham, was found dead on Monday, September 14, at about 1.30pm at Barking Abbey ruins, off Abbey Road, in Barking.

The 25-year-old, who worked at a warehouse as a night duty forklift operator, had been out with friends on the Saturday evening before he was found.

He returned home but went back out again in the early hours of Sunday having called a cab.

CCTV footage shows Jack meeting a taller man in Station Parade near Barking rail station between 2:03am and 3:00am. They walked off together in the direction of the Abbey.

Sergeant Matthew Laffan, from police at Barking and Dagenham, said: “We are not sure how long Jack had been at the Abbey ruins but clearly there is a period of time unaccounted for.

“We are trying to piece together his last movements and the man captured on CCTV may well be the last person to talk to Jack. This makes him a key witness and we need to speak to him urgently.

“If you recognise him please contact us so Jack’s family can understand what happened to him.”

A post-mortem examination into Jack’s death at Queen’s Hospital mortuary was inconclusive and further tests await.

The man is described as white and is between 6ft and 6ft 2ins with a distinctive walk.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 quoting Operation Merckx or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.