A Wiltshire father has told an inquest that his son hugged his mum and said "I love you" the day before he died.

The family of Matthew Allen Griggs contacted police after raising concerns about his welfare when he did not go to work.

Officers found his body at his home, an inquest in Salisbury was told on Wednesday (July 19).

Wiltshire and Swindon senior coroner David Ridley said Mr Griggs, 36, died on Thursday, February 23 just seven days after receiving a letter extending his police bail to May 11.

In a statement, his father Barry Griggs said the last time he saw Matthew alive was on February 22 when he visited his parents after returning home from work.

Mr Griggs said: “As he left, he hugged his mum and said ‘I love you’. Mr Griggs said that when he thought about this afterwards, it was “very unusual” for his son to say this.

Mr Ridley said Mr Griggs was a single man who lived in Warminster Road, Westbury, and had left school at 16.

He worked on a food production line at Trowbridge-based apetito before becoming a key operator ensuring that meals were safe to be sent to buyers.

He said Mr Griggs had been arrested by Wiltshire Police in December 2022 following an incident in November and was released on bail pending further investigation.

The family contacted police on February 23 after finding that Mr Griggs had not been to work – he had never missed a day’s work at apetito since joining the company.

Mr Griggs took a spare key and tried to gain entry to his son’s flat but found the door was locked with a key on the other side.

He said: “I did contemplate breaking a window as I was concerned that Matty had done something. At that point I contacted the police.”

Officers arrived and advised him to go home for half an hour while they gained entry to the flat.

The inquest heard that Mr Griggs had no previous history of mental health issues, although he was regarded as having special needs at school and was seen as being a vulnerable adult.

Mr Ridley said toxicology reports had come back negative. He concluded that “on the balance of probabilities” Mr Griggs had intended to take his life.