Anthony Scanlon

The family of a man found drowned in a canal under mysterious circumstances believe he could be a victim of a ‘Manchester Pusher’.

Anthony ‘Tony’ Scanlon, 48, was found dead in six inches of water at a lock on the Ashton Canal in Clayton on March 5, 2007. Passers-by discovered the father-of-three fully-clothed in the foetal position. Police believe the former probation officer and garage mechanic had simply fallen into the canal around midnight on his way home from a friend’s house, where he had drunk a number of cans of beer.

But his family still believe he may have been the victim of foul play. The post-mortem examination concluded he had drowned and revealed he had enough alcohol in his body to make him four times the legal limit for driving. On his forehead was a ‘small laceration’ and there was a bruise on the side of his head.

He had been found at the end of a narrow, shallow channel of water beside the lock.