|
 It
is unlikely that a devastated family will ever find out why their beloved
son died suddenly in his sleep on the night of his 17th
birthday.
An
inquest on Friday last week failed to find a reason why promising Hayes FC
goalkeeper Ricky “Boo” Jones was discovered dead at this sister’s
house.
Coroner
Sean McGoven passed a verdict of death by natural causes although mystery
surrounds why an apparently fit and healthy boy could died without
warning.
Dr
Robert Chapman, a Home Office accredited consultant forensic pathologist,
could only presume Ricky had a heart abnormality he was unable to test for
after death.
It
is possible he is the latest victim of sudden adult death, likened to cot
death in infants.
CRY,
a campaign group that is calling for more heart screening particularly of
young sports men and women who appear to be most at risk, attributes
between four and eight deaths each week in the UK to Sudden Adult Death
Syndrome (SADS).
Ricky’s
mum, Gina Challen, 45, of Gaynor Close, Hanwell, has called for more
awareness of the problem.
“You
are looking at a broken hearted family here and I would hate for any other
family to go through this, but I’m afraid its going to happen,” she
said.
“I
have found it very, very difficult and without my family I just do not
know what I would have done. We
all want him back but we all know we are not going to get that.”
At
the inquest, Mrs Challen said her son was as happy as she had ever seen
him prior to his death and asked if recent stresses like receiving his
GCSE results or being mugged may have been a factor in his death.
But
Dr Chapman said if stressful experiences generally increased people’s
susceptibility to sudden cardiac arrest he would expect many more deaths.
The
inquest heard Ricky’s girlfriend, Clare King, who was also 17 on the
same day, found him dead on the morning of September 5 in a tent in the
back garden of his sister’s house in Hayes.
Miss
King of Dunstable had left the tent to sleep inside during the night but
returned shortly after 9 am.
She
said Ricky had been out celebrating their birthdays in Uxbridge with his
brother Darrell, Jodie and friends the previous night.
Darell
said: “I have millions of memories of him.
He was a great guy, generous and kind.
We knew what the verdict would be.
“I
don’t think there is closure for any of us.
He was just about to start down a new road in his life after
leaving school and he was going on to further education.
I was really so proud of him, all of us were.
It’s just a total shame and a waste.”
|
