A British man has accidentally stabbed himself to d3ath when he tried to separate two frozen burgers with a knife, an inquest has heard.
Barry Griffiths, 57, died in his flat in Wales, UK, after throttling a knife through his stomach when preparing a burger meal.
Police say his body was not discovered until several days later and when his body was found, it was fully clothed on his bed.
It had to take a post-mortem examination, to show that Griffiths, who had restricted use of one arm after suffering a stroke, died of a stab wound.
Concerns had been raised about Mr Griffiths’ welfare after he had not been seen for more than a week, the inquest was told.
Griffiths, who was described as a ‘very private man’, was found fully clothed with his mobile phone, wallet, and computer according to reports..
Detective Sergeant Stephen Vaughan attended the flat and said he was satisfied that his death was not suicide but ‘more of an unexplained death’.
There was no indication that he had been assaulted, he told the inquest.
Detective chief inspector, Jonathan Rees told Pontypridd coroner’s court on Monday: ‘My thought process favoured the wound had been caused by an accident solely involving Mr Griffiths.
‘The bottom drawer of the freezer had been left open and pulled forward in a position to access food items.
‘On the work surface in the kitchen adjacent to the fridge freezer were two uncooked burgers, a knife and a tea towel.
‘The wound to the abdomen would have been approximately the height of the work surface. My hypothesis at that stage was that Mr Griffiths was attempting to separate frozen burgers using a knife.’
