Inquest into death of John Regan - missing man had drowned in Regent's Canal

Published: 20 May
by JOSIE HINTON

A MAN who disappeared after a night out with friends, sparking a desperate week-long search, fell into Regent’s Canal and drowned, an inquest heard.
John Regan, 30, an analyst for a Camden Town sports betting company, fell into the water in the early hours of November 19 last year.
St Pancras Coroner’s Court heard on Monday that his body became trapped underneath a canal barge near Camden Lock where it remained undiscovered for a week after his death.

Mr Regan, who lived in Chalcot Road, Primrose Hill, and worked for Blue Lizard, based in James­town Road, was seen on CCTV cameras walking through Camden Market and on to the canal towpath. A police investigation was launched but divers failed to find his body, which was hidden from view under the keel of the boat, the court heard.

His disappearance triggered a massive online appeal from friends and colleagues, which was supported by celebrities including poker player Victoria Coren, comedian David Mitchell and TV presenter Claudia Winkleman.
Mr Regan’s body was eventually spotted by police officers patrolling the towpath in Camden Town in the early hours of November 26, exactly a week after he went missing.
A post-mortem examination confirmed the cause of his death was drowning.

The inquest heard that Mr Regan was last seen alive outside Bar Tok in Chalk Farm Road, where he had been turned away as he appeared to be very drunk. He had met friends earlier that evening in The Lansdowne pub, before heading to The Queens in Regent’s Park Road to watch the World Cup play-off between France and Ireland.
Daniel McElvaney, a colleague and close friend who had known Mr Regan for 15 years, told the court: “He was in a good mood because he had just got back from his holiday. He was in very good spirits and his spirits remained high all night. There was nothing out of the ordinary.”

The group moved on to the Oxford Arms in Camden High Street before heading to Bar Tok, by which time Mr Regan had drunk around nine pints of beer and some vodka and Red Bulls. He was refused entry by the bouncer, but Mr Regan, described by friends as a “placid bloke,” said goodbye to them before walking down Chalk Farm Road towards Camden Town.
“We thought he might be flagging a cab down to go into central London, as he did on a reasonably regular basis,” said Mr McElvaney. “We didn’t think much more of it until we didn’t see him the next day.”

But when Mr Regan didn’t turn up to work  on Friday morning, which was “completely out of character” for the football analyst, friends and colleagues reported him missing. Hundreds of posters were put up along the canal towpath and around Camden Town.
Detective Sergeant Neil Lancaster, who was on duty when Mr Regan’s body was found near West Quay, told the court there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.

He said: “The buckle at the top of his belt was undone and so were a couple of his buttons. The most likely cause was that he’d gone down to relieve himself. I could see nothing on him that led me to believe there was any foul play at all.”
Mr Regan had more than £1,000 in cash, a large amount of American dollars and his passport on him when he died, confirming he had not been mugged. Det Sgt Lancaster said police are not seeking anyone else in connection with the death.
Recording a verdict of accidental death, coroner Dr Andrew Reid said he was “absolutely sure” Mr Regan died on November 19, not when his body was discovered a week later.