Deceased
Douglas Thrift
Demographics
71y, male
Date of death
2018-12-01
Finding date
2024-06-12
Cause of death
strychnine toxicity
AI-generated summary
Douglas Thrift, 71, died from strychnine toxicity on 1 December 2018 at his home in Denman NSW. He had a long history of depression and alcohol use disorder with two prior suicide attempts (1984, 2009). On the day of his death, he played golf and consumed an estimated 12+ standard drinks between leaving golf and being found dead in bed. A bottle of strychnine was discovered on his property in January 2023 with his DNA on the rim. Although he had risk factors for suicide (depression, prior attempts, heavy intoxication on the day), the coroner could not definitively establish whether his death was intentional or accidental, noting he appeared well earlier in the week and had concrete plans for the next day.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
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