A father of two from York whose body was found in floodwater died of cocaine toxicity, an inquest concluded today (Friday).
Luke Willetts, 33, wasn’t seen alive after leaving his home at the Black Horse pub in Tollerton early on 23 October last year.
His disappearance sparked a huge search which involved specialist police teams scouring fields and water courses, thermal-seeking drones, divers searching the River Kyle, the police helicopter, and British Transport Police checking along railway lines.
Mr Willetts’ body was found on Sunday 19 November in receding floodwater near the Kyle Beck on land next to Alne Road in Tollerton.
At the inquest in Northallerton today (Friday), coroner Jonathan Leach gave details of a post mortem carried out by Dr Debdeep Dey, a pathologist at James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.
His report found no evidence of grass, mud or foreign material within Mr Willetts’ airwaves.
The provisional cause of death was given as cocaine toxicity and drowning. But given the fact there was no water in the lungs, Dr Dey revised his medical cause of death to be cocaine toxicity only.
That followed a toxicology report which found levels of cocaine “in the range associated with fatality”.
In a statement read at the inquest, Mr Willetts’ partner Lauren Chadwick said they met in 2009, living in Rufforth and then Clifton in York. In September 2022, the couple and their two children moved into the Black Horse in Tollerton where Lauren was the licensee.
Mr Willetts worked at a farm and also helped out in the pub. He was described in a fundraiser set up in his memory as “a beloved son, a supportive brother, a devoted partner, a loving father, and a treasured friend”.
Mental health
He began to have issues with his mental health in the summer of 2023.
Mr Willetts became “paranoid” and convinced Ms Chadwick was having an affair.
Despite her telling him she loved him and was not involved with anyone else, “he had passed the point where he would listen to reason,” she said, and would obsessively check her phone.
He went missing on two previous occasions in October. On both occasions he was found by police and brought home again.
Mr Willetts was referred to his GP practice following an “impulsive” suicide attempt after an argument with his partner. He met with the GP on the 10th and the 17th October.
Where to get help
The GP prescribed anti-depressants and said Mr Willetts had been referred for cognitive behaviour therapy. He reported no further thoughts of suicide or self-harm.
There was meant to be a phone consultation the following week, but the GP failed to get through to his phone. By this time he had been reported missing.
Ms Chadwick said on the evening before he disappeared, Mr Willetts became increasingly questioning and kept wanting to check her phone. She woke at about 3am to find him speaking but he seemed “out of it” and she suspected he had taken illegal drugs.
About an hour later she found him agitated and angry. He left the house at 4.30am and that was the last time he was seen alive.
Friends joined the search and set up a Facebook group to try to find him.
Among those who had been helping in the search was John Stones, who had known Mr Willetts for about a year. In his statement, he said he was taking his dog for a walk at about 9.30am on 19 November and started to look out over the fields with his binoculars.
He saw an object that he could not make out. As he walked closer to it, he realised it was a body, face down at the water’s edge. The water appeared to have retreated by about 2m since the floodwaters receded. Mr Stones then called the police.
Paramedics attended and gave the official time of death as 10.31am on 19 November.
In his conclusion, Mr Leach said that, “notwithstanding that it would appear that Luke had been in the water, he didn’t have any water in his lungs or internal organs”.
That indicated that Mr Willetts, who was born in York, didn’t drown but “died before he entered the water”. Mr Leach said he died as a result of taking cocaine.
He said there was no evidence that he intended to take his own life. He concluded it was a drug-related death, and offered his condolences to Mr Willetts’ family.