An inquest into the death of a man in Thailand has been adjourned after a crucial witness failed to turn up.
Andrew Kimberley was needed to give evidence at Bradford Coroner’s Court into the sudden death of his friend David Pinkney.
Mr Pinkney, 50, of Golcar, died while on holiday on December 12 last year.
Senior coroner Martin Fleming said Mr Kimberley’s absence left Mr Pinkney’s family frustrated, as they were still unclear about the circumstances in which he died.
Addressing Mr Pinkney’s family in court on Tuesday, Mr Fleming said: “Mr Kimberley needs to be with us and had received a letter from me telling him to come.
“He now has two choices. He can come voluntarily or be escorted. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt as to why he isn’t here but he will have to tell me why when he next comes to the court.”
Mr Kimberley was an important witness and Mr Fleming said: “I’m very interested in meeting him as I have seen his statement and want to ask him more questions.
“It is an exceptional situation to have a witness who lives in Huddersfield to an incident that took place abroad.
“The family have not had any information as to what happened. This doesn’t help the grieving process.
“The family are understandably frustrated and I’m very disappointed.”
The inquest was adjourned until Monday, August 15.
