Driver Veysi Dag suicide after losing licence
Published: 09 July, 2010
by JOSIE HINTON
A DELIVERY driver who was forced to stop working after his licence was taken away tragically hanged himself, an inquest heard.
Turkish-born father of eight Veysi Dag was found in the garden of his home in Axminster Road, Holloway, by his wife on April 10.
St Pancras Coroner’s Court was told on Tuesday that Mr Dag was a happy, popular man but had been “troubled” after receiving a six-month driving ban when he was caught by police talking on his mobile phone at the wheel.
It meant he was forced to give up work and was also unable drive his sick wife Neslihan to hospital appointments.
Mrs Dag said in a statement, which was read out to the court: “His driving licence was very important to him. He was extremely upset when it was taken away. He had to contact his employers and tell them he could no longer work. It affected him very much.”
The inquest heard how Mr Dag came to London in 1997 with his family and worked in various jobs, eventually become a delivery driver.
The day before his death he had spent a normal evening with his family before going to bed with his wife and their four-year-old daughter, who slept between them. Mrs Dag realised her husband was not in bed when she awoke at around 4.30am.
“My daughter woke me coughing and I went downstairs to get some water for the child and looked into the living room and he wasn’t there,” she said. “It was just starting to get light and I saw that the kitchen door was open. Sometimes he woke up early to smoke a cigarette in the garden so as not to disturb the children and I called out, ‘are you smoking out there?’ Then I went into the garden and saw him in front of the wall and I saw the rope around his neck.”
Recording a verdict of suicide, coroner Selina Lynch said: “Perhaps if he had asked for help, help could have been given, but not everybody does.”
Speaking outside the court, Mr Dag’s daughter Dilek said: “He was a lovely person and I’m always going to miss him.”