Was drug death sailor murdered in Seychelles?
A ROYAL Navy sailor who died mysteriously from a drugs overdose in the Seychelles was probably murdered and the crime covered up by the authorities, it was claimed yesterday.
Charles Warrender, 22, was found dead in a park after a night out and a coroner has now ruled he was probably given a massive overdose of heroin by an unknown ‘third party’. The 6ft 5in engineering technician was said to be super fit, devoted to his job, proud to serve Queen and country and, said his mother, not someone who would take illicit drugs.
He was serving on the frigate HMS Richmond as part of an operation to tackle drug smuggling in the Indian ocean and his family believe he was targeted in an ‘act of revenge’ by a criminal in the drugs trade. At an inquest, coroner Paul Kelly recorded a narrative verdict because of a lack of conclusive evidence about how he died in the island capital of Victoria early on May 30 last year.
But after the Grimsby inquest his mother Kate Warrender, 59, criticised the Seychelles police, along with the Royal Navy and British authorities for failing to adequately investigate her son’s highly-suspicious death.
She alleged there had been a ‘cover up’ on the islands. She said of the inquest verdict: ‘ We are disappointed. We expected a conclusion of unlawful killing. We believe he was murdered.’
Her son had enjoyed a night ashore eating and drinking with colleagues from his ship and ended up at a VIP bar. The last confirmed sighting of him alive was when he accompanied a colleague in a taxi back to the ship at around midnight.
Mr Warrender then intended to re-join friends back at the bar but never made it.
An investigation discovered he took out £ 200 in local currency from a nearby cash machine at 12.25am. His body was found at around 6.45am. His shoes and socks had been removed and left near his body
‘It was an act of revenge’
and his wallet was empty. Highgrade pure heroin had been sprinkled over his body.
A post mortem examination revealed Mr Warrender was twice the drink drive limit and had been given four times the amount of heroin needed to kill him. Forensic pathologist Nathaniel Cary said traces of a sedative suggested the sailor could have had a spiked drink.
Dr Cary said the mixture of drugs and alcohol ‘ more than adequately accounts for the cause of death.’
Mr Kelly found it was ‘likely’ the drug overdose was ‘administered by a third party.’ He said: ‘There is a possibility a theft was a reason for his death.’
The engineer passed repeated Navy drug tests. Mrs Warrender said: ‘ Charlie was killed by someone in the drugs trade because he was a British serviceman. It was an act of revenge.’