A doctor from Surrey has died from a gunshot to the head while lying in bed in the US after a stray bullet fired in another building travelled through to his room.

Matthew Willson, 31, was in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday night when a gun was fired in a nearby apartment. 

He does not appear to have been targeted directly, local police said, adding that the weapon was discharged “recklessly” by residents next door. 

Officers received numerous calls from residents at around 2am and responded to reports of multiple shots fired in the 3600 block of Buford Hwy in Brookhaven, Atlanta. 

As police investigated, another call reported a man with a single gunshot wound in an apartment in the 3100 block of Clairmont Road.

Willson, of Chertsey, was taken to hospital but later died. He is believed to have been visiting family at the time. 

The incident is being investigated as a homicide, but no suspects have currently been arrested, according to police.  

“This incident appears to be a random act involving individuals participating in the reckless discharge of firearm(s) which led to the tragic death of Dr Willson. [He] was in town from England visiting loved ones when the incident occurred,” the force said in a statement.

A Foreign office spokesman said: “We are supporting family of British man following his death in the USA, and are in contact with US authorities.”