The inquest into the death of Jason McGowan who was found hanged
from roadside railings in Telford three years ago ended with an open verdict.
At the time of the death, it took a senior West Mercia detective less than
half an hour to decide he had taken his own life. A subsequent Metropolitan
police investigation into the handling of the case forced the West Mercia
police to apologise to the family.
The family welcomed the outcome of the inquest, stating that this should have
been the verdict in Errol McGowan's inquest. Before his death Jason had been
investigating the death of his uncle Errol, also found hanged in Telford.
Errol had reported to police that he had received racist abuse death threats.
An inquest into the death of Errol delivered a hung verdict. The family will
be calling for the investigation into Errol's death to be reopened in the
light of the open verdict on Jason's death, including the possibility of third
party involvement in any investigation.