Diabetic who was '˜inconsistent' with his medication found dead in Chesterfield flat

The body of William Scott was discovered by police officers at the Flamsteed Crescent property in March after neighbours raised concerns for his welfare.

Forcing entry into the flat, officers discovered Mr Scott’s body on the living room floor, the documentary inquest at Chesterfield Coroner’s Court heard.

The central heating and electric oven were on and it appeared Mr Scott had ‘collapsed while making his way from the living room to the hallway’.

Officers said the flat was in ‘a dire condition’ with rubbish strewn around and dirty pots and pans abandoned in the kitchen.

Mr Scott was a dog owner and the pet, which was also found in the living room lying away from the body, ‘appeared to be in good health’.

The hearing, on Thursday, October 4, heard Mr Scott suffered from diabetes but was ‘inconsistent’ when it came to taking his medication.

Mr Scott, who was unemployed, also suffered from mental illnesses- namely anxiety and depression, and received frequent visits from psychiatric nurse Alison Bowmer.

Ms Bowmer provided a written statement which confirmed that Mr Scott slept on a bed in the living room, where he spent most of his time.

She said the state of the flat would ‘fluctuate’ and she had offered to help Mr Scott clean, and confirmed he sometimes failed to take his medication for diabetes.

A postmortem found ‘no features that were suspicious in nature’.

But Mr Scott’s body was so decomposed it was not possible to for the pathologist to identify whether or not his diabetes was a factor in his death.

Assistant coroner Peter Nieto recorded the cause of Mr Scott’s death as ‘ascertainable’.

He said: “It could be postulated that a diabetic event contributed to Mr Scott’s death.

“However, I simply don’t have sufficient evidence to conclude this.”