Ghost hunters will be descending into the basement of Brighton Town Hall in search of the spectre of a murdered policeman.

The Brighton police museum opens in the building tomorrow and one of the biggest attractions will be the phantom which allegedly stalks the corridors.

The town hall was once home to Brighton police station and is the only one in the UK where a chief constable was murdered in his own office.

In 1836, Henry Solomon was made chief constable of Brighton Police and eight years later, he was bludgeoned to death.

He was questioning 23-year-old John Lawrence, arrested in St James's Street, about the theft of a carpet.

Lawrence went to an open fire, grabbed a poker and struck the chief so hard on the side of the head it bent the weapon.

He was later hanged for murder and the chief has reportedly haunted the basement ever since.

There will be tours of the museum every day, apart from Sunday, during the Brighton Festival Fringe which runs between May 7 and 28 and then on Saturday mornings at 10.30am and 11.30am by prior arrangement.

Memorabilia will be on display to highlight the changes in policing during the years.

Brighton Police existed as a separate force from 1830 to 1967, before becoming part of the Sussex Police force.

In 1812, before the force was born, there were eight watchmen safeguarding the town.

Their uniform was a top hat, black tailcoat, white trousers, a baton and a rattle.

In 1838, the force consisted of a chief constable, two superintendents, three inspectors, 24 constables and a night constable - a total of 31 officers for a population of 47,000.

By 1868, helmets had replaced top hats and the force had increased to 100 men. In 1901, there were 150 officers to police a population of almost 124,000.

By 1967, there were 424 officers for a population of 169,000 and the force was amalgamated into Sussex Police force.

Councillor Pat Drake, Brighton and Hove Mayor, will attend the opening.

She said: "It has been a fraught year. There have been many hurdles to overcome but the project has been carried along by the enthusiasm of retired and serving police officers and council staff on our committee.

"They have had wonderful support from the Brighton Prince's Trust and graphics students from the University of Brighton."