An inquest heard how a man found dead in Lincoln‘s Brayford Pool drowned in the river after he consumed a “significant” amount of alcohol prior to his death. Police were called in the early hours of May 6 with reports of a body in the water near the flyover bridge in Lincoln.
The body was later identified as 58-year-old Darren Sweetland who lived on a boat in Foss Bank. An inquest was held into Darren’s death at Lincoln Coroner’s Court on Wednesday, July 17 and three family members were in attendance including his mum, sister and brother.
Marianne Johnson, assistant coroner for Greater Lincolnshire, confirmed Darren’s cause of death to be drowning following a post-mortem examination. A toxicology report revealed that Darren had “consumed a significant amount of alcohol prior to his death”, specifically 310 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.
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The inquest heard how this was significantly over the drink-driving limit of 80 milligrams, but Ms Johnson made it clear that Darren had not been driving. A statement was read out in court on behalf of David Fielding, a friend of Darren’s, who said that Darren had come over to his flat on the evening of May 5 to watch the snooker.
It was heard how Darren was returning home from his friend’s flat when his body was found in the river. A student, who was out for a walk with a friend, discovered the body and called police after midnight on May 6.
The coroner drew a narrative conclusion that Darren’s death was a result of an accident. During the inquest, Darren’s brother noted how he had “fallen in quite a few times before”.
Darren’s sister described him as a “funny” person who “had lots of friends but kept himself to himself”. The inquest also heard that Darren was passionate about animals and had a pet cat that he had rescued. His obituary notice in the Lincolnshire Echo states how he “will be greatly missed by all his family and friends”.
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