Coroner Rejects $2,000 Family Robbery Theory About Road Deaths

A coroner has dismissed a family’s concern that a man who died when he was hit by a car while lying on a road in Christchurch may have been robbed for $2,000 in cash before his death.

The money was withdrawn from Richard James Johnson’s bank account the day before his death, but was never found.

Johnson’s family claimed he may have been on the road on the night of July 11, 2017 because he was robbed.

But in a recently released report, coroner Bruce Hesketh ruled Johnson was on the road, either because he had tripped or had a convulsion as a result of alcohol withdrawal and collapsed. He ruled that death was an accident.

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The coroner said Johnson’s family had expressed concerns about “withdrawals from his bank account, specifically a $2,000 withdrawal from his bank account on July 10, 2017”.

“The concerns raised were about possible fraud or coercion by others that Mr Johnson would withdraw and hand over money to others (unknown) or spend money on alcohol for more than himself.

“There was a particular concern that the $2,000 withdrawal could have been stolen from him on July 10 or 11, 2017 because it was not found, and the family could not understand why he would withdraw such a large amount and not take it into account. would keep up.

There was also concern that Johnson may have been robbed of the money just before his death. “This has been put forward as a possible explanation as to why he was on the road when he was hit by the passing car,” the coroner said.

“I’m not satisfied that’s the case.”

Hesketh said he agreed with the police’s view that the money was probably taken to buy a flight to the UK to visit his mother.

He cited official documents stating that Johnson was planning a trip to the UK.

“The difficulty is that it would not be possible to determine” [at] what, if there was a travel agency, the money was spent. If he had bought a ticket through a travel agent, that would explain why no ticket was found, as he probably still had to increase the ticket given the timing of events.

Johnson died at the scene after being hit by a car while lying on Huxley Rd in Christchurch, the coroner ruled.

“On July 11, 2017 at about 9:30 p.m…. Johnson left his unit to purchase milk from a Mobil gas station on the other side of Huxley Rd,” the coroner wrote.

“While crossing Huxley Rd, he either collapsed unconscious or tripped and fell onto the roadway. Shortly after, he was hit by a car… [that] was from the Colombo St intersection turn right into Huxley Rd.”

The coroner said the driver did not see Johnson on the road because of the bad weather and the dark clothes Johnson was wearing.

The report said there was no alcohol in Johnson’s blood or urine when he died.

Hesketh said finding alcohol was important, as Johnson was an alcoholic, but he had tried to cut down on his drinking.

“This left him vulnerable to attacks, of which at least three (possibly four) had been seen in the past,” Hesketh said.

Alcoholics are often vulnerable to seizures when they stop drinking alcohol.

The coroner also found that the driver of the car did not drink alcohol, did not use illegal drugs, and did not take prescription drugs. He also drove within the speed limit.