TRIBUTES have been paid to a well-known shop worker, after a body was found near his home.

Lee Searle, 44, was well-known in the Sedbury community for supporting young people to get involved in music and worked in the Spar for many years.

Zoe Evans, landlady at The Village Inn in Sedbury, said Mr Searle was popular among people in the community.

“He was always smiling and had a heart of gold,” she said.

“He was very well-known in the area and liked to support a lot of things, such as pushing youngsters to get involved in music. He will be sadly missed.”

A former work colleague, who knew Mr Searle when he was a lorry driver for Wincanton, said he was “easy going and generous.”

“We had many laughs and some good stories, he was very easy going and very chatty and generous,” she said.

Tributes poured in on Facebook, with friends describing Mr Searle as a “lovely man” who “always knew how to make everyone’s day.”

Police said a body was found in the search for Mr Searle on Tuesday, who had been reported missing.

His next of kin have been informed, although formal identification has not yet taken place.

A spokesman for Gloucestershire police said: “Officers looking for the 44-year-old, who had gone missing from the Chepstow area, found the body near Lee’s home address.

“Enquiries are currently continuing into the death.”