Latest news with #BenCorser
Daily Mail
7 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Brit traveller, 36, gunned down in 'murder capital' of Mexico was in 'wrong place at the wrong time', coroner told
A British traveller who was shot dead alongside two friends in Mexico 's 'murder capital' was unlawfully killed, a coroner concluded today. Ben Corser, 36, was sitting in the back of a car outside a supermarket in Colima, western Mexico, in May 2022 when he was fatally shot alongside two others in the vehicle, a court heard. The software engineer's father told a coroner the trio were 'tragically in the wrong place at the wrong time'. Emma Hillson, assistant coroner for Cornwall, said the 36-year-old Briton had been travelling around Mexico since January 2022. She added: 'He had been very happy and enjoying a sociable time. 'He had lived in different parts of Mexico, becoming part of the community. 'He was living with an American-Mexican family, with two other young men, Claudio and Alfredo, in Colima. 'They were skateboarders and Ben joined them in skateboarding. On the evening of the incident Ben, from St Just, Cornwall, and Claudio had returned from a trip to Guadalajara and Alfredo picked them up in his car before the trio stopped off at a supermarket. The coroner told the hearing in Truro: 'While the three were in the car, outside the supermarket, all three of them, including Ben who was sat in the back seat, were shot dead.' Mrs Hillson said police reports included one witness statement, from a woman who described hearing gunshots and dropped down to the floor before seeing a van with the driver's door open. Police obtained evidence from video cameras around the scene which showed a grey vehicle with no identifying features. The coroner added: 'Three years have now passed since this death. 'I am satisfied it is unlikely that further information will be forthcoming.' Cornwall Coroner's Court heard Mr Corser was taken to hospital unconscious but pronounced dead on arrival there. A post-mortem examination found he had received a fatal shot wound to his chest. According to local media reports at the time of Mr Corser's death, there has been a surge in violence in the region after the Colima drug cartel switched allegiance to the Sinaloan cartel, the country's dominant trafficking syndicate. Mr Corser's father, Andrew, told the coroner the family had received 'no explanation or reason given' for the shooting, and there was 'no suggestion of robbery, kidnapping or anything else.' 'Police have not passed to us any information apart from the cause of death', the former primary school head teacher said. 'Apparently there has been a dramatic upsurge of violence in Colima. 'It is most likely this was a question of Ben, Claudio and Alfredo being tragically in the wrong place at the wrong time.' Mr Corser asked for information from the Mexican police on their investigation and what lines of inquiry they were pursuing in relation to the case. A police report read to the inquest said a homicide investigation had been launched following the deaths, with evidence gathered at the scene. It referred to the witness statement of a local woman who heard gunshots and threw herself to the ground before seeing a van with the driver's door open but could not give any details on those responsible. Video surveillance from the area showed a grey vehicle with no make or licence plate visible, Mrs Hillson said. 'Investigations are continuing to be carried out,' she read. During the post-mortem examination, a projectile was recovered from Mr Corser's body and stored as evidence, the court heard. Concluding the hearing, Mrs Hillson thanked Mr Corser's family - father Andrew Corser, mother Lorraine Downes and brother Tom Corser - and friends for their attendance and for bringing a picture of him to court. Earlier this month, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) provided a statement to the coroner's court that 'it was unlikely further information would be forthcoming due to the time passed since the death'. In 2024, Colima in Mexico ranked as the world's most dangerous city with a homicide rate of 140 per 100,000 inhabitants. Seven of the 10 cities with the highest murder rates worldwide are found in Mexico. FCDO advises against all but essential travel to the state of Colima, except the city of Manzanillo accessed by sea or air via the Manzanillo-Costalegre International Airport. Mr Corser's shooting came two months after British businessman Chris Cleave, 54, was killed in his car in front of his 14-year-old daughter at a beach resort near Cancun in eastern Mexico. In a tribute issued after Mr Corser's death, his family described him as having a 'breadth that is rare today'. They said: 'He held first class degrees in both fine art and mathematics, he was an artist, a poet, a computer user, maker, coder and programmer, a skateboarder, a sea swimmer, wild camper, a festival goer, an actor, a yoga lover, a photographer, a music maker, a dancer.'
Sky News
9 hours ago
- Sky News
British man shot dead with two friends in Mexico was in the 'wrong place at the wrong time', inquest told
A British man and his two friends were shot dead in Mexico because they were in the "wrong place at the wrong time", his inquest has heard. Ben Marshall Corser, 36, from St Just in Cornwall, was killed while sitting in the back of a car outside a supermarket in Colima on 24 May 2022. Cornwall Coroner's Court heard Mr Corser was taken to hospital unconscious but was pronounced dead on arrival. A post-mortem found he had received a fatal shot wound to his chest. Emma Hillson, assistant coroner for Cornwall, concluded Mr Corser had been unlawfully killed. The inquest heard he was living with two other young men, Claudio and Alfredo, in Colima, with an American-Mexican family at the time of his death. His father, Andrew Corser, said the three friends - who all enjoyed skateboarding - had gone to get some food for Claudio's mother when they were killed. Mr Corser told the court: "It is most likely this was a question of Ben, Claudio and Alfredo being tragically in the wrong place at the wrong time." An inquest in Truro on Wednesday heard Ben had been travelling in Mexico since January 2022 and was "very happy". Mrs Hillson said: "While the three were in the car, outside the supermarket, all three of them, including Ben who was sat in the back seat, were shot dead." Police obtained evidence from video cameras around the scene which showed a grey vehicle with no identifying features. The coroner added: "Three years have now passed since this death. "I am satisfied it is unlikely that further information will be forthcoming." She reached a finding of unlawful act manslaughter, recording that Mr Corser died from a wound caused by a bullet that penetrated his thorax. Earlier this month, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office provided a statement to the coroner's court that "it was unlikely further information would be forthcoming due to the time passed since the death".
The Guardian
10 hours ago
- The Guardian
Cornish man shot dead in Mexico ‘in wrong place at wrong time', inquest hears
A British traveller and keen skateboarder shot dead alongside two friends in Mexico was 'in the wrong place at the wrong time', his inquest has heard. Ben Marshall Corser, 36, from St Just in Cornwall, was killed while sitting in the back of a car outside a supermarket in Colima, in western Mexico. Cornwall coroner's court heard Corser was taken to hospital unconscious but pronounced dead on arrival. His father, Andrew Corser, told the hearing in Truro that his son was healthy and had been enjoying a 'very happy and sociable time' while travelling in 2022. He said Ben and the two friends he had been living with had gone to the supermarket to buy food when they were killed. Corser told the court: 'We have had no explanation or reason given, no suggestion of robbery, kidnapping or anything else. Police have not passed to us any information apart from the cause of death. 'Apparently there has been a dramatic upsurge of violence in Colima. It is most likely this was a question of Ben, Claudio and Alfredo being tragically in the wrong place at the wrong time.' A police report read to the inquest referred to the witness statement of a local woman who heard gunshots and threw herself to the ground before seeing a van with the driver's door open. CCTV cameras were unable to identify the van and the licence plates were not visible, the inquest was told. A postmortem found Corser, who had first class degrees in maths and fine art, had been fatally shot in his chest. Emma Hillson, assistant coroner for Cornwall, concluded that Corser had been unlawfully killed. She said: 'Ben had been travelling in Mexico since January 2022. He had lived in different parts of Mexico, becoming part of the community. He was living with an American-Mexican family, with two other young men, Claudio and Alfredo, in Colima. 'They were skateboarders and Ben joined them in skateboarding. On the evening of 24 May 2022, Ben and Claudio returned to the area on a bus and Alfredo picked them up in the car. 'They travelled along the main boulevard and stopped at a supermarket. While the three were in the car, outside the supermarket, all three of them, including Ben who was sat in the back seat, were shot dead.' The coroner added: 'Three years have now passed since this death. I am satisfied it is unlikely that further information will be forthcoming.'
BBC News
10 hours ago
- BBC News
Man from St Just shot in Mexico 'in wrong place at wrong time'
A 36-year-old UK man killed in Mexico was "in the wrong place at the wrong time" an inquest has Corser from St Just in Cornwall was shot alongside two of his friends while they were sitting in a car outside a supermarket in Colima on 24 May inquest at Cornwall Coroner's Court heard on Wednesday police in Mexico had recorded a report from a witness but had been unable to find the coroner Emma Hillson found Mr Corser had died as a result of unlawful act manslaughter and unlawful killing. Mr Corser's family told the inquest he and friends Claudio and Alfredo had driven to a supermarket in the city and had been shot as they sat in the car, at about 18:40."It is most likely that this was a question of Ben and Claudio and Alfredo being tragically in the wrong place at the wrong time," the family inquest heard Mr Corser had been found unconscious at the scene and had been taken to the regional university hospital for was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital, at 22: post-mortem recorded he had sustained chest wounds consistent with "a projectile shot by a firearm" and a bullet had been inquest heard homicide police officers in Colima had recorded a witness to the incident who said she had heard gunshots and thrown herself to the told them she had seen a closed white van with the driver's door open but she had not seen who was in the Hillson said the Mexican police told her it had gathered footage from a surveillance camera at the scene which had shown a grey vehicle but that no further characteristics, including model and registration number, had been visible. 'Incredibly difficult' She said police had confirmed its homicide investigation was continuing but on 4 June the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) had said "it is unlikely further information would be forthcoming because of the amount of time passed since the death".Ms Hillson said as three years had passed since Mr Corser's death she agreed with the gave her condolences to Mr Corser's family and friends and said: "It is incredibly difficult to wait this time and have no more evidence since then and it be unlikely to have more."Mr Corser's family said: "If there ever is a conclusion drawn by the Mexican authorities as to why and by whom he was killed, that is little consequence to his family because Ben lives on in all of our hearts and in many other ways."
