Mentally ill man died of hypothermia in housing hovel, inquest told

By Andrew Hough 730AM GMT eighteen March 2010

A design tendered to the inquisition of inside the prosaic where the physique of Mayan Coomeraswamy was found. Photo CENTRAL NEWS

Mayan Coomeraswamy, 59, suffered serious hypothermia in his unheated residence that was "barely fit for human habitation", Westminster Coroner"s Court was told.

Despite being visited each fortnight by mental health workers over the past 4 years, he lived alone in "extreme squalor" since officials refused to purify his prosaic in Wandsworth, southwest London.

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He died in Jan last year from healthy causes brought about by hypothermia and neglect, the justice heard.

Council officials feared that if they forced to move him opposite his will would be an abuse of his human rights.

In a ban anticipating Paul Knapman, the coroner, on Wednesday pronounced that Wandsworth amicable services or the internal mental health certitude should have invoked their powers underneath the Mental Health Act to at the moment re-house the indisposed man.

Dr Knapman pronounced he would be essay to the supervision notice that hundreds of alternative people could be vital in identical squalor.

The inquisition listened that the inside of the prosaic had a descending ceiling, cover encrusted floors, unclothed electrical electric wires and a kichen thick with dirt.

Dr Knapman told the justice the conditions were "barely fit for human habitation".

After Mr Coomeraswamy, who had come to Britain from Sri Lanka in 1970 to finish a containing alkali engineering course, unsuccessful to answer calls in January, military were forced to mangle down his door, prior to anticipating him passed on his room floor.

A post mortem found ulcerations on his stomach, an damage usually compared with impassioned highlight of hypothermia, the coroner said.

"Mr Coomeraswamy died from healthy causes, namely heart disease and go through ulcers, aggravated by neglect," he ruled.

"He was found in a cold, careless and unwholesome prosaic and I contend he has died from healthy causes aggravated by neglect."

The inquisition listened that dual yeas after relocating to Britain Mr Coomeraswamy grown overly suspicious schizophrenia, and was forced to stop working.

Dr Knapman pronounced he would be essay to the Department of Health notice that hundreds of alternative people could have suffered identical fate.

"Although Mr Coomeraswamy was a sold box of course, I would be really astounded if there were not poignant numbers of alternative identical cases vital in horrible circumstances," he told the hearing.

"So it is an ongoing complaint that people have out there."

Mr Coomeraswamy"s brother, Antony Coomb, told the conference that Wandsworth amicable services and the mental health certitude "failed in their caring of duty".

Worship House Estates Limited, the landlords, could not convince Mr Coomeraswamy to move to concede them to reconstruct the flat, the justice heard.

Dawn Warwick, executive of amicable services at Wandsworth legislature told the justice the legislature outlayed �6 million a year to the NHS certitude to manage their mental health services.

She told the justice they did not wish to crack Mr Coomeraswamy"s rights to have his own choices.

Dr Ruth Allen, executive of amicable work for South West London and St George"s Mental Health Trust, certified that officials were "aware of the have a difference of the conditions in the flat".

"Going behind to 2004 the environmental health services had been endangered and the property owner had been endangered in deliberation either Mr Coomeraswamy would move and concede critical functions to be done," she said.

"I think it is doubtful that there would have been a march of movement that would not have ridden over his rights to have certain choices in propinquity to his flat. It is not positively straightforward. These are issues for the mental health services.

"I am certain this group was majority endangered to safeguard that the fortitude of this person"s mental health be confirmed and that might have been their priority."