Darren 'killer' died from blood clot

Brian Hossack • Published 11 Mar 2010 14:00

THE man accused of murdering Gourock schoolboy Darren Pyper was said to have died in jail from a blood clot caused by deep vein thrombosis.

A fatal accident inquiry at Greenock Sheriff Court yesterday heard how William Brown, 64, died after suffering heart failure, likely to have been caused by a clot in his right calf.

Brown was on remand at the time accused of murdering Darren, 14, pictured, by stabbing him with a knife in a close in Albert Road, Gourock, on 19 September 2007.

The verdict on the 64-year-old's death was given by consultant forensic pathologist Robert Ainsworth, 36, who carried out the post mortem on Brown after he collapsed and died in Gateside on 23 November 2007.

Doctor Ainsworth told the courtroom he had also found a stab wound on Brown's hip during the examination, which was carried out 10 days after his death.

Darren, 14, pictured, was visiting a pal and preparing to watch Rangers' Champions League match with Stuttgart when he became caught up in a neighbourhood dispute. The teenager died in Inverclyde Royal Hospital shortly after the attack.

Within a week, Brown, who lived in the same block of flats in Albert Road, was charged with the murder of the Gourock High School pupil.

Yesterday, the court heard Brown had been admitted to Inverclyde Royal Hospital twice complaining of chest pains prior to his death. The 64-year-old had also undergone a heart transplant in 1993.

Doctor Ainsworth said: "He was taken to hospital on 6 November where he was diagnosed as suffering from a disease that affected the blood supply to his heart."

When asked if the stab wound on his hip could have caused the 64-year-old's death, the medic said: "There was no sign of infection and, in my opinion, the wound is unlikely to have been a factor, apart from possibly limiting his movement with respect to any clot."

Gordon Hannah, 44, who was in charge of medical care at the prison during Brown's incarceration, told the inquiry Brown had been put on round-the-clock watch after being placed in a cell in the Ailsa Hall on 27 September.

He said: "He would be checked every 15 minutes. This was the highest level of watch and was due to the nature of the charges against him and the fact it was his first time in custody."

The inquiry, before Sheriff Rajni Swanney, continues.

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This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 11 Mar 10

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