A doting dad from Bolton, whose mental health took a turn for the worst after his daughter was taken from him, ended his life using a controlled poison.
Mathew Anthony Price was worried about an ongoing custody battle, domestic issues, and a police investigation when he decided to obtain a ‘suicide kit’. The 37-year-old had shown no signs of suicidal thoughts before ingesting the poison that led to his death on June 28, 2021.
The Rawcliffe Avenue resident had emailed a family member abroad on the morning of his death who informed his GP practice of his intentions.
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This led to the police conducting a welfare check at his home at 9.25am - where they discovered his body in the bathroom. The HGV driver’s mother Judith Price explained that she “couldn’t predict what he did at all”, an inquest heard.
She also said that he never showed any indication he wanted to end his own life or commit self harm. Both her and Mathew’s father Geoffrey Price saw November 14, 2020 - the day his daughter was taken away - as the start of his mental decline.
Mathew’s GP Dr Chowdhury confirmed that he had spoken of family issues and worry over a police investigation that led to him having increasing anxiety in the months leading up to his death.
“We last spoke to him on June 25,” Judith Price told Bolton Coroner’s Court. “He said he didn’t know what was going on [with the police investigation] and had heard nothing about an interview yet.
“He could see no way of getting contact back [with his daughter]. He thought he would not be able to be a coach driver again, which he loved, as he thought the allegations against him would impact him.”
Detective inspector Stuart Woodhead told the court that the allegations, that were not disclosed in court, never resulted in an arrest or charge. DI Woodhead did explain that they found a suicide note at Mathew’s home.
The note, typed as an email on his computer, was titled “I love you all so much”. It explained a number of his anxieties and stresses that led him to make the decision to take the controlled poison and end his life, the coroner said.
This poison was the cause of his death, and something senior coroner Timothy Brennand has described as a ‘grotesque and horrific death’. He recorded a conclusion of suicide.
“It is clear that Mathew had bottled this up and determined there was only one way forward for him,” the coroner summarised. “It is clear he was motivated by a number of personal reasons.”
Concern over chemicals bought online, inquest hears
This coronal investigation was put on hold after Mr Brennand requested an investigation into the chemical used in Mathew’s death and a number of other cases. The two-year long investigation from Greater Manchester Police has uncovered how this particular chemical, which the Manchester Evening News has chosen not to name, had been purchased online by Mathew and dozens of others across the UK and internationally.
The packs were being bought from chemical companies - who have not been charged with criminal behaviour - on the advice of posters on online forums. Expert toxicologist Dr Julie Evans, giving evidence at the inquest, explained that this chemical has been a ‘phenomenal’ problem globally since the Covid pandemic emerged back in 2020.
Detective inspector Andrew Wright told the court of how 45 confirmed deaths in the UK and Europe out of just over 200 people who bought the ‘suicide kit’ have come from just one chemical company. There is a ‘potential’ that this number could be 60.
As few as eight to nine per cent of the 200 buyers were using the chemical for ‘innocent reasons’. The majority, like Mathew, were buying the kit in a bid to end their lives.
DI Wright also explained that 53 lives, those who had bought the pack but not used it yet, have been saved because of this investigation.
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