Holiday balcony inquest hears engineer may not have known he was falling to his death
A post-mortem examination found a "substantial level" of alcohol in Kieran Hughes blood.
Holiday balcony inquest hears engineer may not have known he was falling to his death
Kieran Hughes died in the early hours of 11 July 2025
An inquest has heard that a software engineer may not have realised he was falling to his death from a balcony.
Kieran Hughes, 25, from Nant Gwynant, Gwynedd, died in the early hours of 11 July, 2025, while holidaying in Malta with three friends.
A post-mortem examination carried out by Maltese authorities found a "substantial level" of alcohol in his blood.
At the inquest at Caernarfon Coroner's Court, it was heard there was no evidence of third-party involvement, and coroner Elizabeth Dudley-Jones ruled that his death was an accident.
His dad, Alan, said the family had suffered "heartache all day, every day". Hughes' friends described him as a high achiever, "a legend and a genius".
In July 2025, Hughes and his friends travelled to St Julian's in Malta and stayed at the Cavalieri Art Hotel.
The court heard that on 10 July they left the hotel at about 19:00 BST, went for dinner, visited a casino and other places, and drank beer, cocktails and limoncello.
At about 04:15 on 11 July, a member of the public went into the hotel to report that a man was lying on the ground outside.
Police were called and found a man "in a pool of blood" who appeared "lifeless".
Officers went to room 603, above where Hughes' body was found, and tried to wake his friend, Osian Jones, who was asleep in a "state of intoxication" and smelled of alcohol.
The two had been sharing a room, while the other two friends were in a separate room.
The inquest heard that Jones did not wake until about 06:30, but after investigations there were no signs of third-party involvement in Hughes' death.
There was no disorder in room 603, the inquest heard, and CCTV showed the pair returning to their room holding on to each other.
"It does not seem that there was any animosity between Kieran and Mr Jones," Dudley-Jones said.
There were no reports of shouting or arguing.
CCTV recorded Hughes' fall about 48 minutes after he returned to his room.
An autopsy found he died from multiple injuries after blunt force trauma caused by a fall from height.
No obvious resistance injuries were found, suggesting it was possible "he was not even aware he was falling from the balcony".
The inquest heard it was likely Hughes and his friend went to sleep, and Hughes, in a state of "severe drunkenness", went outside - possibly because he felt unwell or wanted fresh air.
Dudley-Jones told Hughes' family, who were present at the hearing, that his death was a "complete tragedy" and that he was "an amazing man".
She added: "I have not enjoyed this inquest... this one, I have to say, it is very moving."
In a statement read to the inquest by the coroner, Hughes' father Alan said the family faced "hurdle after hurdle" in dealing with the Maltese authorities and said they experienced "heartache all day, every day".