Prince William's cousin found dead aged 20
Roche's death was first disclosed in an obituary published in the Yorkshire Post on Saturday, but wider media coverage followed the opening of an official inquest at the Wiltshire and Swindon coroner's court on Monday.
Area Coroner Grant Davies told the hearing that Roche's body was discovered by her mother and sister at their home in Norton, Wiltshire on July 14 as she was packing for a holiday with friends. A firearm was found nearby.
Davies said police had 'deemed the death as non-suspicious' with no evidence of third-party involvement. He later told The Independent that the cause of death was a 'traumatic head injury,' which could indicate suicide.
The inquest has been adjourned until October 25, and the investigation is ongoing.
Roche was the granddaughter of Edmund Hugh Burke Roche, 5th Baron Fermoy, brother of Frances Shand Kydd – Princess Diana's mother – making her related to the royal family through the Spencer-Roche lineage. She had just completed her first year studying English Literature at Durham University. In a statement, the university paid tribute to Roche, with her professors describing her as 'vibrant and creative' and saying she 'will be sorely missed.'
Neither Roche's family nor Buckingham Palace has issued a public comment.
Roche's grandfather, Edmund Roche, died by suicide in 1984. Last year, another royal relative, Thomas Kingston – the husband of Lady Gabriella Kingston, a second cousin of King Charles III – died from a gunshot wound, similarly ruled non-suspicious.
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