FOUR men have been arrested on suspicion of murder as part of an investigation into the death of a man in Oxford city centre.

Thames Valley Police received a report of an incident, which took place just after 10.50pm on June 11, on Ship Street, near the Covered Market, in which a 63-year-old man was punched once in the head, causing him to fall to the ground and lose consciousness.

Officers and paramedics were called to the scene shortly after and the victim was taken to hospital, by which point he had regained consciousness and was communicating with emergency staff.

However, eight days later, he died in hospital.

A Home Office post mortem, which took place on June 25, could not confirm the cause of death and is now pending further investigation.

The victim's next of kin have been informed and are being closely supported by specially trained officers.

Following an investigation into his death, police made four arrests on Thursday – an 18 year-old and two 21 year-olds, all from west Oxfordshire, and a 20-year-old from north Oxfordshire were all arrested on suspicion of murder.

They are currently being held in police custody.

Senior investigating officer, detective inspector Mike Roddy, of the Major Crime Unit, said: "Since this incident happened, and the subsequent death of this man, detectives have been investigating the circumstances of what took place on June 11, and are exploring all possibilities of how he came to his tragic death.

"Our investigation so far has led detectives to make these arrests, while enquiries will continue.

"However, I would like to appeal for any potential witnesses to this incident of assault in Oxford.

"Specifically, I would ask that anyone who believes that they were in or near Ship Street or Cornmarket Street on this night, please think about whether you may have seen anything that could relate to this incident.

"It took place at 10.50pm, but I would be interested to hear from anyone who believes they may have seen or heard something before or after this time too.

"No matter how insignificant you think any information may be, I would encourage you to get in contact with us as it could prove to be vital in this investigation.

"This happened on a Friday evening, with a number of people in central Oxford that will have been coming and going in this specific area.

"I therefore believe it more likely that there could be witnesses to this incident."

Anyone with information is urged to report it to the police, either by doing so online or calling 101 quoting reference INC-20210707-1280.