'Free spirit' died after canoe he stole capsized

A man described by his family as a "mischievous free spirit" died after a canoe he had stolen capsized, an inquest has heard.

Leon Peter Vernon-White, 24, from Gloucestershire, drowned in the River Teifi, Cardigan, Ceredigion after travelling from Tewkesbury with two friends and his dog to visit his mother on 6 June 2024.

Dyfed Powys Police were made aware of the incident at 19:42 BST on Thursday 6 June and the inquest heard Mr Vernon-White's body was recovered at about 01:00 on Friday 7 June.

The coroner concluded Mr Vernon-White died of drowning, but said alcohol and cannabis in his system "didn't improve his chance".

The inquest at Aberystwyth's Justice Centre heard from both friends, Solomon Stone and Kyle Knox, who said they'd met Mr Vernon-White's mother for a drink at the Saddler's Arms before Mr Vernon-White suggested going for a walk down by the river.

Mr Knox said they'd walked onto St Dogmaels road and through someone's property, when it became apparent that Mr Vernon-White was "looking for a boat to take".

He told the inquest he had enough and didn't want to be "any part" of taking any boat, so left his two friends and the dog.

In a statement read by the coroner, Mr Stone said Mr Vernon-White found a green kayak with two seats in it.

He recalled wondering whether they should be taking it.

Mr Stone said he was in the boat for a short period of time of around 30 seconds, along with Mr Vernon-White and his dog, before it turned over.

"I thought Leon could swim, so I took the dog back to shore," he said.

"After getting the dog back to shore, I turned around to see where Leon was, he hadn't moved from where we capsized."

Mr Stone said Mr Vernon-White shouted that he could not swim.

He claimed he went back into the water to rescue him, but he saw Mr Vernon-White sink in front of him "and then he disappeared".

Another witness, James Leando, was on his boat on the River Teifi at the time of the incident.

In a statement read by the coroner, Mr Leando recalled hearing a person shouting and seeing a male and a small black dog, about 20 to 30 feet away from opposite him.

"The male in the water appeared to be panicking," he said. "I could see that there was a green capsized canoe in the water."

Mr Leando claims he called 999 at 19:39hrs but whilst on the phone to the police he saw the man "disappear under the water".

Coastguards were joined by the RNLI, Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service and other specialist search and rescue teams.

PC Christine Lewis, from Dyfed Powys Police's Crymych station, said Mr Vernon-White's body was found by colleagues of the boat team at approximately 00:51hrs on Friday 7 June, "some 50 to 60 yards up the river, towards Cardigan Bridge".

She explained that due to the river being in, operations had to be slowed down.

The inquest also heard from a pathologists report taken on 14 June 2024, which showed the level of alcohol in Mr Vernon-White's blood stream was twice the legal limit for driving - 150mg per 100ml.

There was also evidence of recent cannabis use.

It also found he had no pre-existing diseases and "no significant external or internal traumatic injuries".

The cause of death was recorded as drowning.

The senior coroner, Peter Brunton, said although Mr Vernon-White's death was not certified until 7 June, the drowning occurred at 19:39 on 6 June.

Mr Brunton agreed that the cause of death was drowning, although "the fact that alcohol and cannabis were present didn't improve his chance".

He ruled out foul play.

Mr Brunton said it was uncertain whether the men were in the canoe or trying to get into the canoe when it capsized.

But the "simple fact" was that both men had ended up in the River Teifi, along with the dog, whilst one could swim, the other could not.

Mr Brunton gave a verdict of misadventure that led to death.

He shared his "profound sympathies" with Mr Vernon-White's family, who were present at the inquest.

"This was presumably a very happy trip to come and see you from Gloucesteshire and things took a turn for the worst," he said, adding: "A tragedy for you all."

The inquest was formally closed.