A British tourist who claimed to have been stabbed by taxi drivers admitted he was actually injured while drunkenly climbing over walls.

Daniel Nolan, 30, from Southampton, had previously told police he had been attacked by drivers while out clubbing in the city centre of Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, on July 26.

He claimed the incident left him with a large cut on his tummy and a torn tendon on his hand. He also said he had lost his phone and was not sure if it was stolen.

Police launched an investigation to find the alleged attackers but there was no sign of the incident on CCTV cameras.

Officers began to doubt Daniel's report when he failed to answer basic questions about the incident during interrogation. After investigating the area where Daniel was found, police on July 29 retrieved security footage that appeared to belie his testimony.

The video shows an apparently drunk foreign man climbing through a coffee shop's yard before scaling the fence and damaging it while leaving blood stains behind. He also allegedly broke several pipes while climbing the wall, which had pieces of glass on top to deter intruders.

Owner Chakrabhand Thiphayamonthon, 60, said: ‘The tourist was in a state of extreme intoxication. He was shouting near the Three Kings Monument and was asked to leave by a security guard.

‘He walked to a motorcycle shop and was shooed away. Then, he suddenly started climbing my house wall which is 6.5ft tall and had glass spikes. My nephew even saw him running.

‘There was blood everywhere so I think he must have been hurt while climbing out. Nobody chased after him and he even dropped his phone at my house. I will not press charges as there was barely any damage to my home.'

Major General Thawatchai Pongwiwattanachai of the Chiang Mai provincial police said investigations are underway, adding the tourist's alleged lies have hurt the province's public image.

The police chief added: 'Making a false police report is also a crime and if the holidaymaker has deliberately done that, he will be prosecuted. He made very serious allegations that police investigated in good faith and spent time working on.'

A Chiang Mai police spokesman said officers found Daniel's phone, which was not stolen in the made-up attack.

They added: ‘We have the man's phone with us and will return it to him.'