Teen, 14, hanged himself in ‘unimaginable tragedy’ after Snapchat message to pal

A 14-year-old boy hanged himself after drinking half a bottle of brandy and sending his friend a troubling message on Snapchat.

William Paddy, a talented horse-rider, was found at his home in Harmans Cross, Dorset the morning after the incident last year.

His mum Lesley Paddy, 53, battled to save her son by performing CPR, but it was too late.

An inquest heard that the teenager had messaged in a group on Snapchat, saying that he was going to hang himself.

One friend, who cannot be named for legal reasons said: “We were messaging on Snapchat that he had a row with his girlfriend.

"At midnight I FaceTimed him. He was crying but I calmed him down talking about Fortnite and tried to distract him.

"The WiFi then cut out and I lost the call. I tried to make contact again but couldn’t get hold of him."

The friend had attempted to cheer William up but was unable to respond to his last message at the time.

William got a bottle of brandy and drank half of it while his mum was asleep, the inquest heard.

His worried friend, who finally managed to get back online to respond to William, received no response from him.

He then asked him mum to call William's mum, who said she did not want to wake them up with a call at 2am over a row, assuring him that his friend would be okay by the morning.

In a statement, William's friend’s mum said: "I never thought even for a split second that Will would actually harm himself.

"Had I thought that for one second I would have rung Lesley and if she hadn't answered I would have driven to their house."

Coroner Brendan Allen referred to William's death as an "unimaginable tragedy."

Ms Paddy told the coroner: "He was arguing with his girlfriend over silly things and because he was very dramatic, I think he drank half a bottle of brandy and was angry. I think he had no intention whatsoever of not being here the next day."

The coroner recorded the verdict of death by misadventure and said he was satisfied that William took his own life, but did not intend to do so.

He said the alcohol would have had some effect, increasing risk-taking behaviour and reducing the ability to make rational decisions.

Coroner Allen said: "Did he intend to? The evidence does not support that – no note, he had consumed alcohol, he had no history of self harm and had plans for the immediate future and long term future.

"He sent a message to his friend which created a situation where he could have been saved.

"I'm satisfied that Will did not intend to take his own life. What he was doing, it went wrong.

"It is an unimaginable tragedy that you have had to go through."

Ms Paddy has set up a charity, Willdoes, to help the mental wellbeing of others, it has already raised £60,000.

Speaking after the inquest Mrs Paddy said: "For myself, family and all of Will's friends it was so important that Will is not defined by his passing but for the beautiful, special person that he was.

"Will was passionate about sports, empathetic and the most loving boy but also a typical teenager.

"He still shows me the way to carry on by founding the charity.

"Will, in everything he did he wrote 'Will does' and so now for me I must continue what Will does.

"If we can help more young people navigate through this minefield of life and achieve their dreams as Will would have wanted for himself and his friends.

"Will had time for everyone, he supported all his friends. He will continue to strive to help people through Willdoes."

For emotional support, you can call the Samaritans 24-hour helpline on 116 123, email [email protected], visit a Samaritans branch in person or go to the Samaritans website.

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