A man who was found bound and gagged in his home on the Norbury borders may have been slowly tortured to death before his body was discovered last week.

Keith Webb, 57, was found with multiple injuries in his Ellison Road home by a family member last Wednesday (January 22) and police are appealing for information about the circumstances surrounding his discovery.

Mr Webb, a single Jamaica-born man with no children, was one of 12 siblings and worked for a local engineering company. He lived in the family home bought by his late parents.

Although police have not revealed the extent of Mr Webb's injuries, they have confirmed that his death was not immediate and was the result of maltreatment caused by at least one other person.

A full cause of death has yet to be established.

Detectives are concerned about the significance of an earlier incident at Mr Webb's address in October last year when police and members of the dead man's family worked together to evict other tenants from the house.

A drugs search warrant was executed at the premises on October 4, 2002, and the other occupants then left the house. Police have said it is too early to establish whether the two incidents are linked.

DCI Brian Haynes, from the Serious Crime Group based at Earlsfield police station, this said: "It is important to stress that Keith was a man of good character.

"He died in the family home, which was bought by his late mother and father who were hard-working first generation immigrants.

"The family had approached police for assistance with problems which had arisen in the house, which a joint approach by police and family helped Keith resolve."

Anyone with information relating to the evicted occupants of Mr Webb's house in Ellison Road or people visiting the premises since last October, should contact the incident room on 020 8247 8261. All calls will be treated in confidence.

January 29, 2003 12:00