A MAJOR police operation was underway at the weekend after the body of a man was found inside a block of flats.

Teams of officers cordoned off Falklands Court in Chandler's Ford after the 45-year-old man was found collapsed in his home.

Detectives initially launched a suspicious death inquiry because the door of the property, which is above a row of shops off Falkland Road, was found wide open.

Forensic teams, wearing white boiler suits, were drafted in to search for evidence while officers stood guard at the entrance to the block and the flat.

A Jaguar XJ Executive car, parked opposite the flats, was also closely examined by police while around six other officers carried out door-to-door inquiries in a bid to piece together the man's last movements and medical history.

The entrance to the block, which is just round the corner from the Velmore Chapel and on a housing estate on the edge of the town centre, had been taped off.

It was reopened after the body had been removed and forensic teams had completed their work.

The inquiry was scaled down later in the day when officers confirmed the death was no longer suspicious.

It is thought the man, who has not yet been identified by police, lived alone and kept himself to himself.

A post-mortem examination was expected to be carried out and next of kin were being informed of the death.

Shoppers popping into the Co-op for their early morning newspapers and provisions were stunned to find there was so much police activity on their doorsteps.

A local shopkeeper, who did not want to be named but whose business is below the block of flats, said: "When I got here at about 9am this morning there was three or four police vehicles and about three or four policemen upstairs. It was like a crime scene."

A neighbour who lives in the block said: "He kept himself to himself but he was always smiling."

He said that the person who died had been a very big man and he used to wander around in paramilitary type uniform.

Marek Mieszko, aged 42, of Leigh Road, said he was shocked to hear about the man's death, saying: "I was only speaking to him the day before and he seemed fine. He was ex-Army and he had problems with his legs."

"I always thought he was a likeable bloke and a gentle giant."

Led by Detective Inspector Richard Pearson, about half-a-dozen detectives carried out door-to-door inquiries and collected statements from local residents.

They were trying to build up a picture of the man's last movements and his medical condition.

Det Insp Pearson said: "We were called to the address in Chandler's Ford after a report that a man had been found collapsed in his flat.

"A neighbour made the discovery and called the police."

He said the high police presence was usual procedure for any death that is potentially suspicious but confirmed that the inquiry had now been scaled down.