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Personal Snapshot

A teenage youth was discovered deceased just days following being wrongly accused of taking the cremated remains of a dead infant during a burglary, an inquest has heard.

Tragic Discovery

Kai Lloyd's mother and father discovered his body in his room at his Flintshire home on November 19th, 2021.

Untrue Allegations Begin

The inquest heard how his mother received a communication on November 8th, 2021 via online platforms, from a woman asking if her son was her child. The communication stated: "Inform him appreciation for burgling my flat."

In a testimony presented to the court, the mother said the individual had been in the media, asserting her baby's remains had been taken in a burglary - a claim which was untrue.

Law Enforcement Inquiry

An investigation report from authorities later determined the alleged break-in complainant had "provided false information" and "evidence shows that said property was never taken in the beginning".

News coverage about the alleged taken ashes attracted social media responses, and although Kai was not named in the posts, his mother said individuals "understood it was him".

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

Emotional Wellbeing Effect

She added that her son had been diagnosed with moderate attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and as part of that condition, other peoples' views genuinely were important to him.

"It would have hurt him deeply," she said, "especially when this was untrue".

The teenager was arrested at home, but nothing was found. He was taken to a police station and later freed under investigation.

Authorities said they would be in contact, the hearing learned, but had failed to reached out to the family by the time of his passing.

Isolation and Worry

His mother said Kai "became isolated" after the arrest and "would keep asking me whether I had heard anything from the authorities", because his condition meant sometimes "a minute could feel like much longer".

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

Online Harassment

In a combined testimony between her and her spouse, the mother said her son was being bullied digitally after the allegations.

The inquest learned that a young adult urged Kai to end his life.

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

She described him as a "caring, affectionate" young man, and said her "relatives is totally devastated".

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

Educational Reaction

The inquest heard from school staff at the local High School.

On 8 November, she "overheard some boys talking that the student had been arrested and that was the initial I learned".

"He told me... he'd done nothing wrong," she added.

After the conversation, the staff member said she rang the family's family telephone and left a voicemail saying she had spoken to the student about the accusations.

The proceedings heard his family said they did not receive that message.

Official Conclusion

Senior coroner told the hearing he would await reports regarding what enhancements had been made to dealing with individuals with ADHD, before determining whether he should make a prevention of subsequent deaths report.

Delivering a descriptive conclusion, he stated: "Approximately November 8th, 2021, unsubstantiated accusations were made against the teenager, a 14-year-old child.

"Probably untruths were subsequently exaggerated and amplified through the medium of online networks.

"During 11 November, he was interviewed by the authorities and following his questioning he was released whilst investigations proceeded."

The official determined: "There is no proof that the acts or failures of any organization caused or added to his death and although it was the result of a self-inflicted act it is not possible to discern his purpose."