Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Friends left shocked by suicide of ‘lovely’ student
Memorial page raises £11,000
A student took his own life after struggling to deal with the death of a close friend, an inquest has heard.
Niall Bays died instantly when he was struck by a highspeed train at Tonford Lane foot crossing near Chartham Hatch at 10am on May 4.
The Canterbury Christ Church University student made reference to close friend Alfie Perrin, who had died in an industrial accident.
In a note left at his house in St Martin’s Road, he wrote he had “not been the same” since the accident several years before.
Grieving parents Colin and Niamh Bays said that in the months after the tragedy their son did not seek counselling and had not found the time to grieve properly.
The much-loved 21-year-old was in the final year of a politics and international relations degree. He fully embraced university life, with socialising and regularly enjoying lectures.
Speaking to the inquest on Tuesday, housemate and friend Roberto Falzoni said: “He was a lovely man, jolly and chirpy. He never opened up and that’s why we were left so shocked.”
The pair, who studied on the same course, became good friends after finding out they were both from Enfield and knew some of the same people.
Despite reservations on how Niall was progressing with his dissertation, Mr Falzoni had no other cause for concerns for his friend. On the night before his death the music lover had enjoyed a friend’s birthday meal, returning home at 9.30pm. Mr Falzoni said he seemed relaxed and sober before going up to his room at around 11pm.
But, in a statement provided to the court, long-term girlfriend Rosie Hopkins said he had become increasingly withdrawn in the days leading up to his death.
Niall was described as a loving and caring person but someone who suffered low self-esteem. He was not receiving any medication, and did not have any drugs in his system when he died.
Assistant coroner James Dillon recorded a suicide verdict at Margate Magistrates’ Court.
If you would like confidential support on an emotional issue, call Samaritans on 116 123 at any time His family have set up a memorial page, which has so far raised £11,600 for mental health charity Mind.
In a statement on the Justgiving page, Mrs Bays paid tribute to her son and his peers following the double tragedy.
She wrote: “We met up with some of Niall’s close friends from home to scatter his ashes at Forty Hall, a place well used by them as a friendship group and us as a family.
“As I looked round at them, it hit me how much they have lost in their short lives. All of them have been affected by deaths of at least two young men in a relatively short space of time and still they keep going – total respect.
“It has made me more determined to raise awareness and make sure support is in place. We never know who the next vulnerable person will be.”