Preston's ex-MMA champ Connor Hitchens died after domestic row tragically spun out of control, inquest hears

Preston man Connor Hitchens, 27, died by hanging in Blackpool on the morning of May 16 last year following a traumatic episode in which he had acted “out of character”.

Blackpool Coroners Court heard that the tragic occurrence was the culmination of an explosive argument Connor had had with his former partner, Backy Morton, with whom he had a young daughter, earlier in the morning.

Neighbours of Ms Morton had heard her screaming and she had jumped over the garden fence to seek refuge with them after being assaulted.

When police were called to the address in the Fylde village of Clifton at around 6am, their immediate concern was with Ms Morton, who was extremely distressed, and it was noted that Connor had fled the nextdoor property.

However, after following domestic violence procedures and putting Ms Morton into an ambulance, police became aware of the vulnerability of the father-of-one, who was also under the influence of cocaine and alcohol.

Blackpool coroner Alan Wilson heard that in phone conversations with Becky’s father and then the police, it became apparent that Connor was a potential suicide risk and was wracked by remorse about the way he had behaved that morning.

Officers realised they had to find the father-of-one quickly, but they were thrown when he said he was heading to Manchester and then refused to divulge his real whereabouts.

The inquest heard from two police officers, PC M Azzopardi and PC Sam Thompson, who explained that, when contact had been made with Connor by phone, they could not allow him to speak to Ms Morton because that would be in breach of strict procedures which had to be followed in serious domestic incidents.

A decision was made to implement a method called cell siting, the process of determining the location of a mobile phone, to find where a device was located at a specific time , but the court heard from Insp Peter Hannon that this method could only track the general area, not a pinpoint location.

Connor had in fact driven to Blackpool, some 11 miles away, where he took his own life by hanging, close to in a play area close to Seasiders Way and was found unresponsive just after 8.30am

Connor’s mother and sister had questioned whether police could have acted more quickly to trace Connor in the desperate hours before his death.

The court heard that Connor, who had a long term ADHD issue, had been struggling due to a number of factors.

A talented and popular MMA fighter who had been a British champion, he had badly affected after suffering two defeats, including a knock-out, which was poured over on social media.

Additionally, he had incurred an injury which meant he wasn't able to train in the gym, which had impacted on his mental health and led him to start taking cocaine.

Connor had also struggled with the break-up of his relationship with his ex-partner and was finding it hard to cope with the fact that she was now seeing someone else - the cause of the row on May 16.

Taking into account that Connor had been under the influence of both cocaine and alcohol, Mr Wilson recorded a short narrative verdict, saying: “On this occasion. I’m persuaded that I don’t think it would be appropriate to record a suicide conclusion, simply because I’m not of the view his thinking would have been clear enough for im to have made a fully informed decision and thought thrugh the consequences.”

Mr Wilson said that he could not find that the actions of the police could be criticised in terms of anything they had done or not done. He said they needed to be applauded for for the way they had handled the situation.

He also said: “in terms of his partner Becky, she is totally blameless in what happened to Connor, in my view. She talks fondly of Connor and his character, but relationships come to an end, people meet other people. She cannot be blamed in any way for the actions Connor went on to take.

“Regarding the police response, these cases are very emotive, for obvious reasons. I totally appreciate why Connor’s family have raised the issues they have. On this occasion it was important to hear from a range of police officers, so the court had a chance to hear how events unfolded that morning.

“I do not believe there has been a failure in some aspects of the police response. Having heard evidence from the two police constables today, I feel their response is to be applauded. The focus was on Becky initially, which is understandable.

“I cannot say that the earlier use of cell siting could have led to Connor being found any earlier.”

In a statement from his motherJoanne Hicks, read out by Mr Wilson. She said more than 600 people had attended Connor’s funeral and what had happened that morning was not the measure of him. He was a man who had a kind and gentle soul.

Connor represented the UK in the European and World Championships in 2015 and 2016.

Kerrith Brown, International Mixed Martial Arts Federation president, said after his unexpected death: ''On behalf of the entire International Mixed Martial Arts Federation we are deeply saddened by the passing of Connor Hitchens.”