THE death of a former shop fitter and father-of-one from Newport has been ruled as misadventure by David Bowen, the senior coroner for Gwent.

Anthony James Carroll, 40, of Fields Road, a former pupil of Rougemount School and Bassaleg Comprehensive, was found dead in his kitchen on Friday, July 11, 2017.

He was found by his mother, Ann Blenkarn Carroll, whose testimony was read aloud at the hearing.

The inquest heard that Carroll, who had been diagnosed with leukaemia at age of 25, was struggling to cope with the constant pain following hip surgery, which left him unable to drive, walk or work.

“He died as a result of opiate toxicity,” said Mr Bowen, adding that a "cocktail" of different drugs were found in his bloodstream.

The post-mortem examination found one particular drug to be at 654 micrograms per litre in his blood.

Mr Bowen returned the verdict at Newport Coroner’s Court on Thursday, January 11.