'We agreed on meeting place if we got lost at gig - then son's body was found'

Daily Mirror

2 days ago

Ryan Jones, 23, was sadly found lifeless on a beach by a local worker who assumed he was a rescue dummy. A coroner has shared a detailed breakdown of his final moments
A "talented young man" who was discovered dead on a beach tragically died from drowning after he lost his dad on a night out, a coroner has ruled.
Ryan Jones, 23, sadly became separated from his father, Steve, as they watched a concert among a busy crowd in Blackpool on Valentine's Day. The pair had been enjoying their time watching two bands at the Winter Gardens before the night took a terrible turn.
‌
Despite the father and son pre-arranging a "meeting place" in case they lost each other, Steve was unable to locate him at the end of the evening. The dad spent hours desperately searching for Ryan, but couldn't see him. In the end, he assumed that Ryan had either "met someone or gone to a B&B".
‌
However, the next morning Ryan's dad "felt something was wrong" after he had failed to come home. Steve drove back to Blackpool and he and family members began searching for 23-year-old Ryan. As they were looking along the Promenade they got a call from Ryan's driving instructor Simon who had been called by someone named Phil Marsden who had found Ryan's wallet and phone on the beach.
At around the same time, RNLI volunteer Matthew Fife was walking his dog on the beach close to the lifeboat station, and saw what he initially thought was one of the crew's dummies on the sand. When he got closer he realised it was a man's body which was later identified as Ryan.
An inquest held yesterday (Monday June 16) at Blackpool Town Hall heard that Ryan, from Wrightington, had several injuries and bruises including to his face, stomach and legs. However, Pathologist Sameer Shaktawat concluded these were consistent with a body being in the water; a conclusion which was also reached by police.
Pathologist Sameer Shaktawat said: "He had facial injuries and bleeding. There were changes in the skin that showed the body had been in the water. There was bruising on various parts of the body including the leg, the right lower abdomen and also the face; the forehead and nose. The body had been in the water. There was fluid in the lungs from the body and sea water. Except from those findings there wasn't much significant findings elsewhere."
‌
Toxicology tests revealed that Ryan had 167mg of alcohol in his blood at the time of his death. The drink driving limit is 80mg, reports Lancs Live. There were no other substances in his system. The coroner asked the pathologist if there was any way of knowing how long Ryan's body had been in the water. "It's difficult to know the exact duration. Rigor mortis was present and takes 24 hours to remain. This starts between six to eight hours."
Detective Inspector Dave Little from Lancashire Constabulary told the inquest that searching for someone on CCTV in Blackpool is "incredibly difficult". DI Little said: "Looking for somebody in the crowds when the Winter Gardens is emptying is very, very difficult to do."
He added: "It was cold, the alcohol, and I think both of those factors, along with probably not knowing the area and not knowing where he was, the lack of lighting, I think he's found his way into the water and then sadly not been able to get out. I can't say with any certainty where that was."
The coroner concluded: "There is no evidence to suggest Ryan had been a victim of an assault. He died from drowning while under the influence of alcohol."