Police are questioning three men on suspicion of murder after a man was found dead in Caerphilly county.

David Gaut, 54, was found at a flat in Long Row, in the Elliots Town area of New Tredegar on Saturday afternoon.

Gwent Police have refused to confirm or deny if he is a child killer of the same name, who was convicted of murdering his girlfriend's 17-month-old son in Caerphilly in 1985.

The arrested men, including two from New Tredegar who are aged 23 and 51 and a 47 year-old from Aberbargoed, remain in custody, police said.

A man called David Tracey Gaut, who was jailed for life at Cardiff Crown Court for the murder of toddler Chi Ming Shek in February 1985, would be 54 years old this year.

The dead man's middle name was Tracey and he said he had been recently released from prison for shooting a man by accident, according to neighbours in New Tredegar who spoke to WalesOnline.

During sentencing in 1985 Mr Justice Caldfield described the torture and murder of the toddler as "the worst crime in the land", adding: "The person murdered was a defenceless little baby and on the jury's finding you not only murdered that child but also tortured him."

Media reports claim that the man who was convicted in 1985 was called David Tracey Gaut and he then lived in Buxton Court, Lansbury Park, Caerphilly.

The toddler's mother Jane Pickthall, who was then aged 23, had been out drinking and left Gaut to look after her two young children.

She arrived home in Caerphilly and made love to Gaut, but the next day she found her son's dead body under a chest of drawers in his bedroom.

She could see her son, who was also known as Marky, was badly bruised in the groin area, chest and forehead.

The murder trial heard that Gaut tried to make the death look accidental.

But pathologist Dr Owen Williams said the baby's injuries could have been caused by punching, kicking, falling, being thrown or a combination of these.

Prosecutor Aubrey Myerson QC said, while Ms Pickthall was out, neighbours heard loud noises, including banging and crashes.

The boy died of multiple injuries including a broken arm, injured liver and spleen and a fractured skull.