🔗 Share this article

Family Photo

A teenage youth was found dead only a few days following being wrongly blamed of stealing the ashes of a deceased infant during a burglary, a coroner's inquiry has learned.

Tragic Discovery

The young boy's mother and father found his body in his room at his Flintshire residence on 19 November 2021.

False Accusations Begin

The inquest learned how his parent got a communication on 8 November 2021 via social media, from a individual asking if Kai was her child. The communication added: "Tell him thanks for breaking into my flat."

In a testimony presented to the proceedings, Lisa Lloyd said the woman had been in the news, claiming her baby's ashes had been stolen in a break-in - a allegation which was untrue.

Law Enforcement Inquiry

An investigation report from police later concluded the supposed break-in victim had "lied to police" and "it now appears that said property was never stolen in the beginning".

News coverage about the supposed stolen ashes attracted online comments, and although the teenager was not named in the posts, his mother said people "understood it was him".

The "online posts were extremely upsetting", she stated.

Emotional Wellbeing Impact

She added that Kai had been identified with mild attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and as part of that condition, other peoples' opinions genuinely were important to him.

"It would have affected him severely," she commented, "particularly when this was untrue".

The teenager was arrested at home, but nothing was discovered. He was taken to a law enforcement facility and later released pending further inquiry.

Police said they would be in touch, the hearing heard, but had failed to reached out to the family by the moment of his passing.

Isolation and Anxiety

His mother said Kai "withdrew into himself" after the arrest and "repeatedly inquired me whether I had heard anything from the police", because his ADHD meant sometimes "a minute could seem like days".

When she talked to him about the supposed incident, she said her son informed her he had entered the residence because the resident who resided there had said he could use the bathroom anytime he needed, but refuted taking anything.

Digital Harassment

In a combined testimony between her and her husband, Mrs Lloyd said her son was being harassed online after the allegations.

The proceedings learned that a 19-year-old encouraged the teenager to end his life.

She had no worries on the evening before he passed away, explaining how she had listened to him "chuckling and joking".

She portrayed him as a "caring, loving" young man, and said her "family is completely devastated".

He had been "clearly concealing his concerns", she stated, noting that he could not bear to have anybody "have negative thoughts of him".

Educational Reaction

The inquest received testimony from school staff at the local High School.

On 8 November, she "overheard some boys discussing that the student had been detained and that was the first I learned".

"He told me... he'd was innocent," she continued.

After the discussion, the staff member said she rang the family's family telephone and provided a voicemail saying she had spoken to the student about the allegations.

The proceedings learned his parents said they never got that communication.

Official Conclusion

Senior investigator told the hearing he would await reports regarding what improvements had been made to dealing with individuals with ADHD, before deciding whether he should make a avoidance of subsequent fatalities report.

Delivering a descriptive conclusion, he said: "Approximately 8 November 2021, unsupported accusations were made against the teenager, a young child.

"Likely untruths were afterwards embellished and exaggerated through the medium of social media.

"On 11 November, he was interviewed by the authorities and following his interview he was freed whilst inquiries continued."

The official concluded: "There is no proof that the acts or omissions of any organization led to or added to his passing and although it was the result of a self-inflicted act it is impossible to determine his intent."