Police confirm the death of a 74-year-old man after ‘severed head’ was found following a bus collision on Edinburgh Street

Police in Edinburgh have confirmed that an elderly man was killed in a road traffic incident following reports that a “severed head” was found in the city center on Saturday evening.

Officers reportedly responded to the Cowgate area after a 74-year-old pedestrian was hit by a bus.

“Ghastly” and “gruesome” images of the head have been shared on Facebook, although these have not been verified by the media.

A 999 call was made from Cowgate, a popular nightlife area, shortly after 8pm on Saturday evening, leading to road closures in Blair Street, Guthrie Street and Candlemaker Road.

An eyewitness told Edinburgh Live: “We were having a drink in Bannermans and wanted to leave, but an employee stopped us.

“He said the police were outside and a severed head had been found in the Cowgate. I almost laughed because it was Halloween weekend and I thought it was a joke. We went to the bar where the staff said no, it’s real.”

She added: “I saw three police cars and five police officers and a small silver tent. The police were cordoning off the area. We are in another pub now. The whole area is closed off. It seems so surreal.”

As of 10am on Sunday morning, bus services had resumed through the area.

A video from De Standaard shows a man picking up a head before putting it down again, while another person jumps over it.

Sergeant Louise Birrell, from Edinburgh’s Road Policing Unit, said: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the man who died.

“Extensive investigations are underway to establish the full circumstances of this incident.

“Officers have spoken to a number of people who were in the area at the time and work is underway to check public and private CCTV footage.

“We are still keen to hear from anyone who has not yet spoken to police. If you have any information about what happened, please contact us.

“Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101. Please quote incident number 3395 of Saturday, November 2, 2024.”

Chief Inspector Trisha Clark, the local area commander, said: “We are aware of videos and images circulating on social media that are causing distress to the family of the deceased and those who inadvertently view them.

“We would ask the public not to share them out of respect for his family, and to report them on the relevant social media platform to prevent further spread.

“There has been a lot of speculation and I would like to reassure the local community that this was an isolated incident and there is no risk to the general public.

“This was a tragic incident. We are investigating an accident and our highway patrol officers, assisted by local officers, continue to investigate.”