Mr Spooner was born and raised in Nottingham and also lived in Germany during his time with the Royal Signals regiment.
Today, Nottinghamshire Police confirmed the name of the man whose body was found in a flat in Forest Fields. They said that Barry Spooner, 74, had been stabbed and that his body ‘may have been there for some time.’
A murder investigation is underway and two people, a 58-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman, have been arrested on suspicion of his murder.
A 53-year-old man has also been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.
His family said: “Barry was a kind and gentle man loved by all in our family. He was a great brother and a dear uncle who was taken away far too early. He will be sadly missed by all.
“He was a devoted family man who would help anyone in need. It is sad for us that no farewell words were spoken and that we had no time to say goodbye to him. He was gone before we knew it.”
Detective Chief Inspector Clare Dean, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “It is clear that Barry died a very violent death and we are doing everything we can to find out what happened and who is responsible for this crime.
“We believe he may have been dead for some time before his body was found, and would like to speak to anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious in this area towards the end of May.
“As our investigations continue over the coming days, our thoughts will remain with Barry’s family at what we know will be an extremely difficult time.”
• Man’s body found in Nottingham: murder investigation launched