A 66-year-old man who had a history of alcohol misuse died at home, an inquest has heard.

David Smith, who was employed as an automotive engineer, was found at his home in St Michael’s Close in Thetford March 22.

An inquest held at Norfolk Coroner’s Court on Thursday, June 25, heard that Mr Smith’s brother alerted neighbours after becoming concerned for him.

He was found unresponsive and had “clearly been dead for some time”. A post mortem found his medical cause of death was unascertained.

Jacqueline Lake, senior coroner for Norfolk, gave an open conclusion.

She said: “I have received some background evidence from his brother that Mr Smith had some alcohol problems in the past but was trying to get his life back together again. He was making and was also planning to move closer to his brother.

“The post mortem is unable to give a cause of death on the balance of probability but does state that there is no evidence of unnatural death.”