Christmas jumper party drug binge led to death of fundraiser
A CHARITY fundraiser and event organiser died in his sleep from a deadly cocktail of cocaine and Ecstasy after a Christmas jumper party.
Darren Batey, 32, had mixed the drugs with alcohol during a party to celebrate ‘tacky Christmas jumpers,’ an inquest heard.
But it is feared he may have succumbed to their powerful effects during the night he spent with Paul Sutemire at his flat in Hulme.
He was found dead in bed by his flatmate on December 21 last year, 24 hours after Mr Sutemire was seen leaving the apartment.
Mr Sutemire, 33, was quizzed by police but was cleared of any wrongdoing after tests on Mr Batey’s body showed there were no signs of violence.
Mr Batey - whose friends included Coronation Street actor Antony Cotton - had worked for the Albert Kennedy Trust which cares for young people in the LGBT and had helped raise £100,000 for charities including Macmillan Cancer Support.
The Loughborough University graduate ran gay festival Bolton Pride, volunteered at Brighton Pride and also helped at the 2012 Commonwealth Games in London.
The tragedy occurred after Mr Batey threw a party at his flat on December 19 and invited various friends.
His flatmate returned from a trip to London to find Mr Batey on a bed in a kneeling position with his head down. He realised he was dead and dialled 999.
David Apsley-Thompson, Darren’s best friend, told the hearing: “Darren was a huge character and very out-going.
“It was his annual tacky Christmas jumper party.
“I did not see Darren take any other drugs before we left the house but while we were in the pub he went off to purchase more cocaine. At around 4am we all went home.” David’s husband James said: “I saw Darren taking drugs and had seen this previously so it wasn’t a surprise. But something about his appearance made me question if he had taken anything else.
“He was making erratic actions with his hands. “He seemed a lot more animated.” Tests showed Mr Batey died from drug toxicity with traces of MDMA, cocaine and methadone in his system. He was also the equivalent of twice the legal alcohol limit for driving.
Recording a narrative conclusion of drugs related death, Senior Coroner Nigel Meadows said: “There were no signs of any kind of assault or natural explanation for his death.
“Darren was an adult and if he wished to take drugs and alcohol that was up to him but sometimes that can have very adverse effects.
“Nobody really knows what the effect of taking these kinds of drugs are as they are not medicinal.” Senior Coroner Nigel Meadows