Three men have been arrested after a pensioner fell off his mobility scooter and suffered a cardiac arrest shortly after a suspected street robbery.

Police were called to The Boulevard in Crawley at around 3.50pm on Sunday afternoon as ambulance staff treated the 77-year-old man after his fall. 

Sussex Police said it is believed that shortly beforehand the man had been “involved in an altercation” close to the public toilets near to Marks and Spencer.

The pensioner was taken to St George’s Hospital in London, where he died shortly before 9pm on Sunday. 

Police are now treating his death as manslaughter. 

A 36-year-old man from Crawley and two men, aged 41 and 25, both of no fixed address, were arrested on suspicion of robbery and later further arrested on suspicion of manslaughter.

They remained in custody on Monday morning. 

Sussex Police are appealing for anyone who witnessed the incident or has any information to report it online or call 101 quoting Operation Salzburg.