THE body of a young man was found in the River Dee after an extensive search to find him, an inquest heard.

Darren Thorley, 21, was last seen at his home in Kelsterton Road, Connah's Quay, on the afternoon of Friday, November 20, 2020.

A chain of events that began with his mobile phone being found by a stranger on a wall Dock Road sparked a major search of the river and estuary involving the RNLI, Coastguard, and North Wales Police.

The inquest at Ruthin attended by Darren's mother and stepfather, Yvonne and Gareth Preece, and other members of the family heard that a lifeboat crew discovered his body close to the Flintshire Bridge.

Mrs Preece told the inquest that "as a family we are absolutely shocked and devastated that Darren has gone".

"He will be sadly missed by us all."

Mrs Preece told the inquest that she had a discussion with Darren because she suspected, based on her intuition as his mother, that he was taken illegal substances.

In the week prior he had not attended work and had complained of stomach pain.

His friends had said he was in low mood and had become more isolated.

Darren left the family home at 3pm and Mrs Preece had become concerned when a friend returned his mobile phone after collecting it from the person who had found it in Dock Road.

Friends and family began to search for Darren. The police were called and an extensive search was carried out of the area around Tata Steel, Connah's Quay Power Station, and Dock Road.

The search continued through the day on Saturday, before an RNLI crew found Darren's fully-clothed body about half a mile north of the Flintshire Bridge on Sunday, March 22.

The crew recovered Darren's body and were met by emergency services at Connah's Quay.

Members of a Welsh Ambulance crew recorded the time of death as 1.15pm.

Assistant Coroner for North Wales (East and Central) Elizabeth Dudley-Jones said that a post-mortem had found the drug ketamine at a level that could cause arrhythmia, convulsions, coma, and death.

She said there was no evidence to suggest Mr Thorley had intended to take his own life. Therefore, she recorded a conclusion of a drug related death.

She said described the death of a young man with his whole life ahead of him as "a complete tragedy".

The former Sealand Primary and John Summers High School pupil had studied bricklaying at Deeside College. He worked as a self-employed bricklayer but when that dried up during the pandemic he found alternative employment at local factories.