A dad who 'adored his kids' and who 'got on with anyone' was found dead at home after discovering his mum was terminally ill.
The family of Robert David Courtney have paid moving tributes to him as they revealed his mother tragically passed away just five days after her son.
Robert, 35, was discovered in his bedroom at the house he shared with his nan on Thursday, December 1 last year, however, he could not be saved. A coroner has now ruled his death was drug-related.
READ MORE: Join the FREE Manchester Evening News WhatsApp community
The inquest heard that on Tuesday, November 29, Robert had been out with his brother and that he then spent much of the following day in bed Lancs Live reports.
When Craig called to check on him in the early evening Robert said "I'm not well, I'm not well" the hearing was told. Craig raced round to the home Robert, 35, shared with nan Joan Owen in Skelmersdale in Lancashire, went up to his brother's room and told him to get some sleep."
"He would normally sleep it off and wake up in the morning and say he'll never do it again," he said in a statement. The following morning, Robert's nan Joan had been visited by her sister Brenda and when they realised there were no sounds coming from his bedroom they went to check on him.
Robert had been heard snoring and they left him assuming he was asleep. However, at 1pm, Robert still hadn't surfaced and Joan went again to check on him. As she opened the door she "immediately knew something was wrong". Paramedics were called but Robert was sadly pronounced dead.
The inquest held at Preston Coroner's Court on Monday (April 24) heard that Robert had just started a new job, delivering car parts, and had recently reported being clean of cocaine and alcohol for several weeks.
In his statement, brother Craig said Robert had been using cocaine for several years. Although he could go a week without taking the drug he would then "go on a bender", he said.
Toxicology tests carried out as part of his post-mortem showed Robert, who was born in Ormskirk and grew up in Skelmersdale, had potentially fatal levels of heroin in his system at the time of his death. The tests also found evidence for recent cocaine and amphetamine use.
Concluding that Robert's death was drug-related, Assistant Coroner Laura Fox said: "He had a long history of drug abuse. Toxicology tests tragically confirmed that his blood concentration of total morphine was within the range encountered in fatalities associated with the use of heroin."
The hearing was attended by Robert's other brother, Michael, as well as Michael's partner and the mum of Robert's two children. After the inquest, they described how he "adored his kids" and would "get on with anyone".
They revealed how just a few days before Robert's death he had found out his mum was terminally ill and she tragically passed away five days after her son.
Read more of today's top stories here
READ NEXT:
- The 'worst' street where people ask how many more will die
- Prisoners 'running the wings', 'inmates off their t*ts', staff who have 'lost control' - the jail that's had £1bn of public money
- Man raped woman in the woods - then attacked brave dog walker who intervened
- People forced to walk down the Big One as it stops mid-ride AGAIN for second time in weeks
- Manchester's real-life Peaky Blinders only feared one thing
