A CORONER has heard moving tributes to a 24-year-old Carlisle man whose mother described him as “an all-round nice lad”.

Daniel Kirk died in his bed at the Carlisle home he shared with his mum Janice and his brother James, an inquest in Cockermouth heard.

Mr Kirk – who had struggled with depression, anxiety and chronic pain – died from the combined sedative effects of various pain-killing drugs he had taken, including morphine and Pregabalin, the hearing was told.

As the inquest drew to a close, assistant coroner Robert Cohen invited comments from Mr Kirk’s parents.

His mother said: “We all loved him.

“He was an all-round nice lad. He meant the world to us and I will never, ever get over this - never. I loved him with all my heart.” Mr Kirk’s father Chris echoed that comment, and thanked the coroner for dealing with the hearing respectfully, adding: “It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever had to cope with in my whole life.”

The inquest heard statements about events leading up to the tragedy on January 16, describing how Daniel Kirk had visited a friend’s home in Botcherby the day before he died.

Mrs Kirk said he had returned to live with her after the breakdown of his marriage in May last year. He had regularly taken cocaine and this contributed to his problems, said. But with his family’s support, he was doing well.

Recalling events leading up to his death, she said she collected her son from the home of his friend in Oakleigh Way, Botcherby, in the early evening of January 15.

As he left the house, she said, she noticed he appeared to be under the influence of some substance, and looked “stoned”. After stopping off at a local chip shop at his request, she drove back to their Brackenleigh Close home in Morton, where he finished his meal.

He at one point nodded off but could hold a conversation, she said. His mother found him dead in his bed the following morning.

A post-mortem examination confirmed Daniel had taken drugs – including morphine, diazepam gabopentin and pregabalin, all of which depress the respiratory system. The cause of death was mixed drug intoxication.

Assistant coroner Robert Cohen said Daniel was clearly a nice guy.

He added: “He’s left a great hole in his family’s life. Daniel had mental health struggles and he had a tendency to get opiates as much as possible.”

He used that medication to manage his pain, said the coroner, adding that it was clear he ingested significant quantities of such medication before his death.