BREAKING NEWS British soldier found dead in his barracks after lying there for three weeks was 'degraded' by superior officers, inquest hears
A soldier found dead in his barracks after being missing for three weeks was 'degraded' by his superior officers, with one posting videos of his 'humiliations' in a WhatsApp group, an inquest heard today.
A friend of Lance Corporal Bernard Mongan said 'bullying would be an understatement'.
He described how the father-of-three was 'shouted, screamed and swore at', made to clean senior officers' cars in his own time and 'forced' to do extra runs in his lunch break without being given time to eat.
The 33-year-old's decomposing body was discovered on January 23, 2020 in his bedroom at Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, three weeks after he was last seen.
An inquest at North Yorkshire Coroner's Court has heard his cause of death is still 'unascertained' as decomposition made it difficult for doctors to determine.
Today former corporal Stephen Timmerman, who lived in the same accommodation block as L/Cpl Mongan, told the hearing he 'wasn't treated the same way' as other soldiers in their squadron.
He said: 'He was given tasks that he shouldn't have been given, and just the general way he was spoken to by higher ranks.
'His seniors, quite a few times, he would be left to do their work for them in his own time.'
Relatives of Lance Corporal Bernard Mongan, 33, described him as 'intelligent' and 'happy-go-lucky' but said if he was 'bullied or targeted it was hard for him to accept'
Mr Timmerman said he could remember three occasions when Lance Corporal Mongan was given a military Land Rover to clean that was not his.
He said that on a military exercise around three months before his death, Lance Corporal Mongan was 'shouted and screamed at' in front of other soldiers by his own superior officers in his own department for carrying out an order from another department.
Mr Timmerman, who has since retired from the Army, said: 'It was very aggressive, very abrupt, some swearing ... It was very harsh language and it wasn't his fault, he was carrying out an order he was told to do.'
He said that on the same exercise Lance Corporal Mongan was told to help other departments set up their radio masts but was refused help with his own and told to 'do it himself'.
Mr Timmerman said Lance Corporal Mongan was put on remedial physical training after failing a fitness test, but was also 'forced to go for an extra run on the same day and given no time for having lunch and breakfast'.
He described Lance Corporal Mongan as a 'cuddly teddy bear' who may have been a 'soft target' because he was 'a nice guy who took things easier'.
He told the inquest Lance Corporal Mongan had issues with two sergeants and was 'undermined' and 'come down on very harshly', saying he had been considering a service complaint.
Asked if he was bullied, Mr Timmerman said: 'I would say that was an understatement.'
He told the hearing: 'They spoke to Bernie as if he was inconsequential,' adding that he had been spoken to 'like a piece of s***' and 'degraded'.
Asked if he was aware one officer 'had been posting videos on a WhatsApp group of humiliations of Bernie', Mr Timmerman said: 'I didn't know about that.'
The inquest heard Lance Corporal Mongan had been selected for a detachment with 77 Brigade, which was due to start in January 2020.
But his room at Catterick would be kept for him while he was away so he could use it for visits with his three daughters.
Mr Timmerman said: 'There was a noticeable change in him, he was happy, he was ready to move away.'
The hearing was told Lance Corporal Mongan had separated from his wife and spent Christmas at another soldier's house.
Mr Timmerman said he last saw him at the barracks on December 27, telling the inquest: 'He was very happy and couldn't wait to go for a detachment.
'He said: "Have a good New Year, hopefully see you soon".'
The witness said he returned from a trip to Scotland on January 5 but was not expecting to see Lance Corporal Mongan as he was due to be on detachment by then.
The inquest heard he started to notice an 'unusual smell' in the block after a few days, and on January 22 realised it was coming from inside his room.
He spoke to a superior officer about getting the keys for the room, and the two of them went in the next morning to find Lance Corporal Mongan's body lying face-down on his bed.
The inquest heard Lance Corporal Mongan had tried to kill himself several times and spent time at a recovery centre run by Help For Heroes.
Former Royal Marine Jules Burnard, who struck up a friendship with him when they met at the facility, said he had last seen Lance Corporal Mongan on January 1, 2020, and that he had been 'very positive' and looking forward to the detachment.
Mr Burnard said Lance Corporal Mongan had opened up to him about being bullied, and how that had affected his mental health.
He told the hearing: 'He was a loveable, likeable, upbeat person. There was nothing not to like about Bernie.'
Following the discovery of his body, an empty litre bottle of Jack Daniels whiskey was found in his room, along with body-building supplements.
Tests on his body found a type of barbiturate.
The two most likely causes of death were considered to be poisoning or a sudden abnormality of the heart, the inquest heard.
But a Home Office pathologist told the first day of what is expected to be a three-week hearing that he could not say which of these was the most likely.
His cause of death was officially recorded as unascertained due to the period of decomposition.
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