photo: Sc0RcH (CC by 2.0)
The Prodigy frontman Keith Flint died with unspecified amounts of cocaine, alcohol, and codeine in his system, according to autopsy details.
The 49-year-old Flint was found dead in his home in North End, Essex on March 4th. Strangely, the Chelmsford Coroner’s Court ruled that Flint died due to hanging, but subsequently stated that there wasn’t enough evidence to conclude Flint took his own life.
Coroner officer Linda Calder confirmed that Flint was found at his home address by a friend, hanging from a beam in his home. Senior Coroner for Essex Caroline Beasley-Murray released this statement today regarding Flint’s death.
“I’ve considered suicide. To record that, I would have to have found that, on the balance of probabilities, Mr. Flint formed the idea and took a deliberate action knowing it would result in his death. Having regard to all the circumstances I don’t find that there’s enough evidence for that.”
Beasley-Murray says it is impossible to know what was going on in Flint’s mind during his drug-induced state.
The coroner said there is insufficient evidence to record Flint’s death as an accident, though it was suggested that the singer may have been “larking around, and it all went horribly wrong.” She told the court that Mr. Flint’s family and band manager had no desire to attend the inquest proceedings.
The hearing was held in their absence and no witnesses were called to give evidence in person.
After details of the inquest were released to the public, a post on The Prodigy’s Twitter account asked for those suffering from depression to not “suffer in silence.” Flint’s funeral was held on March 29th, with thousands of fans lining the streets of Essex to pay their respects.
Flint first rose to fame in the 1990s with hits like ‘Firestarter’ and ‘Breathe’. His bandmates Liam Howlett and Maxim described him as a true pioneer, innovator, and legend in the community.