A 15-HOUR manhunt ended in tragedy when the body of a man was found in a wood near Chippenham.

Police officers were joined by 24 volunteers from Wiltshire Search and Rescue and three specially trained dogs after a 57-year-old man was reported missing on June 17.

Police received a call at 7.30am from a worried relative living in the Hill Corner Road area of the town following the man's disappearance.

It is thought the missing man had been suffering from depression and there was great concern for his safety.

After 12 hours of hunting for the missing man, Lowland Search Dogs from Hampshire and Sussex were called in to assist the operation and at 8.30pm, the body of a man was found in Bird's Marsh Wood, Chippenham.

Although the cause of death has not been confirmed, the man's death is not being treated as suspicious by police. It is understood he may have died as a result of an overdose.

Sergeant Martin Alvis, of Chippenham police, said around 15 officers had been involved in the search.

"Following information received there was concern for the man's safety and this led to an extensive search of the area," he said.

Steve Upton, chair of Wiltshire Search and Rescue (WILSAR) was also involved on the operation on the day.

He said WILSAR had received a call from police at midday and then arrived in Chippenham to plan the manhunt.

After searching the woods, volunteers cleared the area in the early evening to make way for the sniffer dogs.

Vanessa Courtney, chairman of Lowland Search Dogs Southern said her team received the alert text from WILSAR that afternoon asking for their assistance.

She said handler Troy Skinner and six-year-old chocolate Labrador, Jenson, made their way to Chippenham alongside operational support and backup Kev Saunders.

She said: "Jenson is an area trained dog and can cover ground of up to 50 acres in one hour.

"The team got to Chippenham quite late in the evening, at about 8pm and it was there that they met with the other search and rescue workers.

"At around 8.15pm they were then deployed to search the woods and it was at 8.35pm that the man was found, which was very sad.

"The woodland was quite dense, but the dogs are okay with this, it is harder on the handlers."

Jenson, who is an air-scenting dog, is trained to pick up any human scent in the area and then signal to his handler when he has found someone.

His specially trained code involved him sitting at Mr Skinner's feet to signal that he had found someone in the wood.

The cause of death is being investigated and a coroner's file is being prepared, following which an inquest is likely to be opened and adjourned. The man's identity has not been released by police.