Death initially probed as murder was drug overdose

The death of a woman that initially prompted a murder arrest was caused by an unintentional drug overdose, a coroner has said.

Kirah Sines, 26, from Bagshot, Surrey, died suddenly in Jameston, Bracknell, Berkshire, on 4 June 2024.

Police arrested a 27-year-old man from Woking on suspicion of her murder but he was later released and the criminal investigation was dropped.

Coroner Alison McCormick concluded Sines' death was caused by combined drug toxicity.

Berkshire Coroner's Court was told Sines was domestically abused and exploited by former partners and suffered "long-standing trauma difficulties", including PTSD.

She also had a long history of cocaine use but missed appointments with drug rehabilitation services and other agencies. She was repeatedly found to have sufficient capacity to make her own decisions.

McCormick heard Sines died following a non-intentional self-administered overdose of cocaine and pregabalin.

Sines and a partner had been staying at the Village Hotel in Bracknell in the hours before her death, about half a mile away (0.8km) from where she was eventually found by a member of the public.

McCormick praised Sines' family, who she said had acted in a "courageous and dignified way" throughout the inquest.

The coroner said she was satisfied that agencies in Surrey, which had extensive contact with Sines, had taken appropriate action following her death.

At the time, her family said they were "devastated and all heartbroken" by her loss and that she was a "one-of-a-kind with a heart of gold".