greed is never good when class A’s are involved…
Reveller died from mass overdose
A reveller who died at the Glastonbury Festival had taken 11 times enough cocaine to kill, an inquest has heard. Benjamin Shepherd, 25, of Benedict Street, Glastonbury, died at the Worthy Farm site on the evening of 24 June.
The inquest in Wells heard it was not possible to tell whether he had taken a large amount of the drug, or a smaller amount of exceptionally pure cocaine.
The cause of death was given as acute cocaine toxicity. The coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death.
Mr Shepherd had sold cocaine to a work colleague at the festival on the day he died.
I don’t believe for one minute that Ben had any intention of doing anything but have a good time at the festival.
East Somerset Coroner Tony Williams
Mark Gregg said he was concerned about Mr Shepherd’s condition after meeting him earlier that day to buy the drugs. In a statement read to the inquest he said: “I’m no expert in drugs but the state he was in was not through alcohol.
“I assumed it was through drugs. He was sweating and his skin was bright red.”
Mr Gregg said he left Mr Shepherd at 1100 GMT on the Friday of the weekend festival in June last year.
He collapsed and started fitting and, despite the efforts of fellow festival-goers and medics, he was pronounced dead at the site’s medical centre.
East Somerset Coroner Tony Williams said: “The findings are pretty astonishing.
“That is a huge amount of cocaine – 11 times the fatal dose.”
He also had high levels of ecstasy in his blood.
Mr Williams said: “I don’t believe for one minute that Ben had any intention of doing anything but have a good time at the festival. It was a good time which was to result in his death.”
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/england/wiltshire/4772550.stm
Published: 2006/03/03 19:00:23 GMT
© BBC MMVI
