Holme Hale man died of heroin overdose

A Holme Hale resident died from a heroin overdose, his inquest heard today.

Brian Martin Burdett, 60, a builder of Red Lion Close, was found dead on August 19, 2020, after a neighbour had noticed his door had been open since the previous day.

The neighbour had gone in and found Mr Burdett unresponsive in the kitchen. Police said there was no suspicious circumstances and Mr Burdett, who was a known drug user, had been found with drug paraphenalia.

The inquest held in Norwich heard that Mr Burdett had a range of health issues, including COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

A post-mortem report said that cause of death of heroin toxicity combined with the effects of COPD, which would have compromised his respiratory system.

Giving a narrative verdict that Mr Burdett had died of a drug-related death, coroner Jacqueline Lake said her thoughts were with the family.