A MAN who died from head injuries after falling out the front door of a sports shop during a struggle had grabbed a member of staff by the neck when asked to leave, an inquest heard yesterday.
Daniel Mahon (40), a father of four, Raheen Park, Ballyfermot, Dublin, died on March 10th last year, two days after he fell in an altercation at a Wheelworx in the Fonthill Retail Park in Clondalkin.
Dublin Coroner’s Court heard that at 12.45pm on March 8th, 2011, staff at Wheelworx noticed Mr Mahon in the store. He was holding a metal slat hook – used to display merchandise – in his hand and concealing it in his pocket.
Former store manager James Kelly said he decided to ask Mr Mahon to leave after watching him from a distance. He approached and lifted the hook away from Mr Mahon without touching him.
“He turned around and had a threatening face on him. I asked him what his intentions were with the hook and he shouted directly at me ‘you better watch yourself around here’. I was very frightened and I asked him to leave.”
He held open the front door at which point Mr Mahon “lunged” for his neck, he said. He had a grip of his throat and the two men struggled before both fell out the door and on the ground. Mr Mahon was bleeding from the head and ear.
Staff and customers went to his aid and he was taken to Connolly hospital, Blanchardstown, where he died two days later.
State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy, who performed the postmortem, found Mr Mahon had sustained a fracture to the rear of the skull in the fall consistent with the back of the head striking a solid and unyielding object. The cause of death was head injuries.
A toxicology screen found that as well as prescribed medications, Mr Mahon had methadone in his system. He also had cirrhosis of the liver. His mother Peggy told the court that her son was waiting for a liver transplant.
Det Garda Insp Richard McDonnell of Lucan station told coroner Dr Brian Farrell that the DPP directed that there be no prosecution.
The inquest jury returned a verdict of death by misadventure.