A MAN may have frozen to death after a stolen car he had been travelling in crashed.

Danny McLeod missed his footing as he ran from the scene of the crash through woods and plunged to the bottom of a hidden ravine.

Wearing only a T-shirt and jeans, the 22-year-old died of suspected hypothermia, according to a post-mortem examination.

His body was discovered by a man exercising his dogs 48 hours after the car crashed in Liverton Road, Liverton Mines, east Cleveland.

Detective Inspector Colin Galloway is appealing to the public for help in piecing together the events leading to Mr McLeod's death.

He said: "Danny McLeod is thought to come from Loftus. He may have been with two friends in a car that crashed on Friday. All three made off and it seems Danny, on his own, ran into the woods.

"His body, dressed in T-shirt and jeans, was found face down in undergrowth down a steep ravine. There were no apparent injuries."

Because of the remote and rough nature of the terrain, fell experts from Cleveland Search and Rescue were called in to recover the body.

Police are appealing for anyone who was with Mr McLeod from Friday onwards to call them on (01642) 302626.

Pete Mounsey, of Cleveland Search and Rescue, said: "It was a wooded area, down a hill. It was a remote area and it took us half an hour to evacuate the deceased.

He said the nearest houses were half a mile from where the body was found.

The car crashed some time after 4pm last Friday and had been reported to Cleveland Police as stolen.

* Two men, aged 21 and 22, from Liverton, have been charged with aggravated vehicle taking and have been released on police bail, pending their appearance before magistrates on October 21.