A MAN from near Malpas travelled to Scotland where he took his own life, a coroner ruled.

Alastair Stewart Done, 25, of Beachcroft, Hampton, was found at Balmedie Beach in Aberdeenshire on January 20 after an extensive missing person search.

Coroner John P Ellery told an inquest at Shirehall that on the morning of January 4 Mr Done’s mother, Faith, had noticed he was not at home and texted him.

He replied: “I’m gone, no-one contact me.”

A Police Scotland investigation found CCTV footage of Mr Done at railway stations in Crewe, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

He later went to Blackdog and then walked to the White Horse Inn, Balmedie where he spent the night.

Early on January 5, Mr Done left the White Horse and bought food at the Premier Stores before going to the Balmedie North Beach car park.

The coroner said that up until 3pm, Mr Done was seen by several people either in the car park, on a footpath or on the beach.

One of the witnesses, Leslie David Smith, said in a statement that at 2.15pm the next day he saw a rucksack, blue roll mat and headphones in the sand.

They were the same ones that he had seen Mr Done wearing on January 5, the inquest heard.

At 2.50pm on January 7, Mr Smith saw clothing belonging to Mr Done on the beach.

He called police at 5pm and went back with them to the beach on January 8 and items including a black fleece, similar to the one Mr Done had been wearing, were found.

A missing persons inquiry was launched and Mr Done’s body was discovered on the shoreline by a member of the public.

A post mortem gave the cause of death as drowning.

There was no drink or drugs in his system.

Mr Ellery, senior coroner for Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin, said that Mr Done had a previous history of suicidal thoughts and self-harm.

It was clear that Mr Done had removed his outer clothing before entering the sea, and he had not been dressed appropriately for entering freezing cold waters in January – which eliminated the possibility of a swimming accident.

The coroner also noted that Mr Done did not buy a return train ticket, and recorded a conclusion of suicide.

Faith Done accepted the conclusion, adding that he “was very deep, too deep and that he was “bright enough to know” what he was doing, she added.

“He wasn’t under [the influence] of alcohol or anything,” she added.

She thanked Police Scotland and Cheshire Constabulary, who were commended by Mr Ellery for their investigations.

She also thanked the coroner’s office for its efforts to establish what happened.

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