Retired farmer found dead in a slurry pit took his own life, inquest finds

John Charles Barnett, 90, was found dead on his farm on January 2, 2020 (Picture: Andrew Price)

A retired farmer found dead the day he changed his will had taken his own life, an inquest has concluded.

John Charles Barnett, 90, died on January 2, 2020.

Earlier in the day, he decided to reduce the amount of money his employee of 32 years, Nigel Byrne, would inherit.

He left him £20,000 cash instead of the estimated £2 million worth of farm assets he was originally due to get.

An inquest heard that Mr Byrne had visited Mr Barnett’s home at Hully Farm in Whitchurch, Shropshire, on the evening of January 2 and found him missing.

He noticed several ‘unusual’ things, including a light left on that was never usually used.

There was also no sign of Mr Barnett’s mobility scooter where it was normally kept.

‘I was getting very worried at this time. I felt very anxious and upset,’ Mr Byrne told the inquest at Ruthin County Hall.

Nigel Byrne said Mr Barnett ‘was like a second dad to him’ (Picture: Andrew Price)

He ‘frantically’ asked Mr Barnett’s neighbour Robert Millington if he had seen the pensioner, who relied heavily on carers and Mr Byrne for help with everyday tasks, but there was no sign of him.

Eventually, he noticed what appeared to be track marks from Mr Barnett’s mobility scooter on the farm yard.

He then found the scooter at the edge of the slurry pit.

Mr Byrne used a loading vehicle with bright headlights to shine down into the lagoon ‘trying to find Charlie’ who he described as ‘like a second dad’ to him.

Mr Barnett’s children Jennifer Parry-Jones and Robert Barnett (Picture: Andrew Price)

Mr Barnett’s children told the inquest they believed Mr Byrne had something to do with their father’s death.

Daughter Jennifer Parry-Jones said: ‘I don’t want to think it but there was only one person there, Nigel Byrne.’

She stressed that part of the reason she believed this was alleged inconsistencies between Mr Byrne’s account of whether a set of keys were left in the door or not.

Her brother Robert said: ‘It’s a horrible thing to have to believe but we know that there was one horrible incident of where he abused and threatened dad.’

An aerial view of Hully Farm, Tybroughton, on the Wales-England border near Shropshire (Picture: Media Wales)

But Mr Byrne denied the allegations, saying he and his employer never even argued.

‘It was always banter between us back and to,’ he added.

Home Office forensic pathologist Dr Jonathan Medcalf said that, while there was some bruising, ‘there were no overtly suspicious injuries identified such as to suggest a violent assault or potential dragging of the body’.

Senior coroner John Gittins found ‘unlawful killing is a possibility’ when the inquest opened in October this year but has now concluded otherwise.

He told the hearing there was no evidence that Mr Byrne, Mr Barnett’s family, or any other third party had played a part in the death of John Charles Barnett.

Mr Gittins said he found the time window provided by Mr Byrne and the police’s investigation to be ‘entirely credible’.

He also found that Mr Byrne’s ‘concern, consideration and love of Charlie’ had led him to put himself ‘at considerable risk’ to find him.

After reviewing the evidence, including post mortem findings which ‘could not find any evidence to conclude any violence or acts of force undertaken against Mr Barnett’, Mr Gittins ruled out a conclusion of unlawful killing.

He went on to say that, while not recent, Mr Barnett had previously expressed suicidal thoughts which ‘clearly bore similarity’ to how he came by his death.

It was ruled, that on the balance of probabilities, Mr Barnett died by suicide.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

The farmer’s children suspected foul play because their dad had changed his will on the day he died.