A Pembrokeshire man ended his life three weeks after he lost his partner, an inquest heard today (Wednesday, February 21).

Coroner’s officer PC Carrie Sheridan told the hearing that 64-year-old Cardiff-born Malcolm John Pascoe was described by neighbours as being fit and healthy.

Pembrokeshire coroner, Mark Layton, heard that three weeks before his death Mr Pascoe’s partner had passed away.

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The family had arranged to meet and scatter her ashes at the end of October.

On October 26 last year, a family member contacted the police to ask officers to carry out a welfare check on Mr Pascoe, as nobody had heard from him for some days.

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Police entered Mr Pascoe’s Wolfscastle home and found him lying in bed. There were two empty bottles of painkillers nearby as well as a copy of Mr Pascoe’s will and a letter to his son.

PC Sheridan said that the death had been treated from the outset as a sudden and unexplained death.

A post-mortem showed "very high" levels of morphine in Mr Pascoe’s blood as well as other drugs at a therapeutic level.

It gave the cause of death as acute respiratory depression due to drug intoxication.

Mr Layton said that Mr Pascoe had taken deliberate steps to end his life and was no doubt affected by the loss of his partner three weeks earlier.

He recorded a conclusion of suicide and extended sincere condolences to Mr Pascoe’s family.