British tourist death remains mystery
A coroner has recorded an open verdict on the death of British tourist who died on a stag party trip to Tenerife, saying it wasn’t possible to prove what happened.
Electrician Lee Mairs, 24, who had flown to the Canary island with a group of 22 friends, suffered a fractured skull and bleed to the brain after falling onto some concrete steps outside his hotel in Playa de las Americas following a night out.
Mr Mairs, from Stockport, was rushed to hospital in Santa Cruz where he died.
The coroner was told that his room at the Hacienda del Sol hotel was found to have been ransacked but nothing was missing.
Recording an open verdict, Coroner John Pollard said there was insufficient evidence to decide how Mr Mairs died.
He said it was possible he had been assaulted on the way back to the hotel and then fell again, or that he fell from the balcony. He said he could have been assaulted at the hotel and fallen over.
The coroner added: "Then there is the possibility a combination of these things happened. We cannot prove it one way or the other."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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