THE man who died in a house fire in Bolton last week has been named as Christopher Murphy.

Mr Murphy, who came from St Helens, Lancashire, was squatting in the vacant Manchester Road property at the time of the fire which took place on Wednesday evening last week.

Just two days before his death, the 43-year-old had appeared before Bolton Magistrates where he was fined £38 for stealing two pairs of socks from Sports Direct in Oxford Street, Bolton, on January 24.

According to court records, Mr Murphy’s last registered address was in Harpurhey in Manchester.

An investigation was launched in the immediate aftermath of the fatal blaze and Greater Manchester Police are now treating the incident as “non-suspicious”.

A police spokesman said: “At this stage police do not believe this was a suspicious incident pending a coroner’s inquiry.

“We can confirm that the man who died was a squatter and we have traced a family link to an address in St Helens.”

Fire crews were called to the blaze at about 6pm on Wednesday. Two firefighters entered the house and pulled Mr Murphy out.

Paramedics then attempted to revive him at the scene before taking him to hospital where he later died.

The house, which is next to Foster’s hair salon and opposite Orlando Bridge, suffered extensive damage.

The two firefighters were thought to be suffering with heat exhaustion following the fire but have since recovered well.

The cause of Mr Murphy’s death will now be determined at an inquest.