Polish driver Lukasz Urban was shot in the head hours before suspected jihadist killer Anis Amri rammed the man’s lorry into a crowd, say German media citing a post-mortem examination.

Twelve people including Mr Urban died in the attack on a Berlin Christmas market on 19 December.

Mr Urban, who was also stabbed, was hailed a hero amid reports that he had prevented further deaths.

But doctors have ruled out that he was conscious, says Bild newspaper.

The conclusions of Mr Urban’s post-mortem examination say he was shot in the head between 16:30 (15:30 GMT) and 17:30 and lost a lot of blood, the paper reports. His boss and cousin said he had lost contact with him at around 16:00.

The attack on the market at Breitscheidplatz took place just after 20:00, and he may still have been alive at the time in the passenger seat although not capable of grabbing a steering wheel, Bild adds.

Mr Urban, 37, had parked the 40-tonne lorry in Berlin, waiting to unload a consignment of steel beams the following day. A petition calling for him to be given a posthumous award had attracted some 38,000 signatures by Tuesday.