A MAN has died in hospital after his vehicle caught fire in a town centre.

Peter Abnett, 48, whose last known address was in Medway, was found by police and fire officers in a Ford Transit in Eastbourne at 1.20am on March 8.

He was taken to Eastbourne District General Hospital, suffering from serious burns, where he later died.

Mr Abnett was working in Eastbourne as a building contractor for a construction company based at Biggin Hill.

Police believe he had been out with friends in the evening and had returned to the van to sleep.

A Sussex Police spokesman said: "We are not treating the death as suspicious and as of yet, we are unable to confirm Mr Abnett’s address because our records only show an address in Medway in 1996.

"We are still investigating how this tragic accident happened."