An Albanian man who died on the Bibby Stockholm had not raised a complaint or concerns about conditions onboard, an inquest has heard.
Leonard Farruku was found unresponsive in a shower cubicle on board the accommodation vessel at Portland Port, Dorset, on December 12 2023.
An inquest in Bournemouth was told that a post-mortem examination found that the 27-year-old died as a result of compression to the neck and suspension by ligature.
His sisters, Marsida Keci and Jola Dushku, have questioned how their brother, who they said had struggled with his mental health since the death of their parents, was allowed to be moved to the Bibby Stockholm.
Coroner Rachael Griffin said: “There is no evidence before me that Leonard was subject to racism or inappropriate acts and there is no evidence that he ever raised a complaint or concerns about conditions on the barge to those at the barge or to anyone, which is quite a contrast to the concerns he raised at the hotel.”
Mr Yusuf Kargbo, who arrived in the UK in July 2022, told the hearing that he was moved to the Bibby Stockholm in November 2023, where he was placed in a room with Mr Farruku and added that “everything was upside down” when he arrived in the room.
He said that Mr Farruku was a “quiet person” and added: “He would only smile and go about his business.”
Mr Kargbo added that he had not known Mr Farruku’s name and only knew he was from Albania.
He said that Mr Farruku did not have friends on the barge and would sit in the dining hall looking at his phone, and added that he would also laugh at videos on his bed and would put up a sheet to give him some privacy in his bed.
Mr Kargbo said that he had not seen any unusual behaviour from Mr Farruku and added: “I have never had any concern about him because he always had this smiling face.”
He added that he had not seen Mr Farruku banging on the walls of their room or any other “bad behaviour”.
He said that on December 11, Mr Farruku returned to the room at about 6pm and then went into the shower.
Mr Kargbo said he did not see him again that evening and the following morning, he woke up and found that Mr Farruku’s bed had not been slept in and he raised the alarm with security staff.
The inquest heard that the security guards found Mr Farruku in the shower and tried unsuccessfully to give him first aid.
Levana Coker, who worked as a stewardess on the Bibby Stockholm, told the hearing that she had been advised informally to “stay away” from a resident who was behaving unusually.
She said: “Our manager said there was a service user that was acting strangely and unusually, he was laughing and crying, walking around, talking to himself and we should all stay away.”
Ms Coker added that the person involved had not been identified and added she had “assumed” it referred to Mr Farruku after his death.
Isabella Basstone, a receptionist on the Bibby Stockholm, attended to Mr Farruku as he arrived at the barge.
She said: “I remember he was very smiley and came across as very bubbly and sweet. I just remember him being very friendly and happy.”
The hearing was told that Detective Superintendent Neil Wright, of Dorset Police, had been in charge of the police investigation into Mr Farruku’s death and had found that there was “no evidence of third-party involvement” in his death.
The inquest has heard that Mr Farruku was previously accommodated at the Esplanade Hotel in Paignton, Devon, and began to show aggressive behaviour in July 2023 and had been “distraught” when informed he was being transferred to the Bibby Stockholm in November 2023.
Ashley Rangasamy, community builder for Torbay Community Trust, had told the hearing that he was told that Abhijith Jayaseelan, hotel supervisor at the Esplanade, had “tricked” Mr Farruku by telling him that he was not going to the Bibby Stockholm and said he was going to Swindon instead.
Ms Griffin said that Mr Jayaseelan had since denied taking this action and had said he was not working at the hotel on the day of the transfer.
She said: “It’s fair to say that Mr Jayaseelan strongly refutes that evidence and believes he was not present on the day Leonard was transferred to the barge and had there been such activity, there would have been a report to the management and local authority.”
The coroner said that she intended to give her conclusion to the inquest on Thursday, October 2.
