20JUNE86 A 37-YEAR-OLD HEROIN ADD

20JUNE86

A 37-YEAR-OLD HEROIN ADDICT DIED AFTER SHARING HIS FINAL
‘FIX’ WITH HIS JUNKIE GIRLFRIEND, A SOUTHWARK INQUEST HEARD ON
FRIDAY.

ANDREW DELANEY, UNEMPLOYED, OF CUBITT TERRACE, CLAPHAM,
BOUGHT THE FATAL DOSE OF THE DRUG ON THE STREETS ON MAY 1 THIS
YEAR AFTER AN UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT TO KICK THE HABIT.

A STATEMENT READ TO THE INQUEST, WHICH WAS MADE BY THE MAN’S
GIRLFRIEND, ALEXANDRA GALBRAITH, TOLD HOW THE PAIR SPENT
THREE DAYS ‘DRYING OUT’ TOGETHER SHORTLY BEFORE DELANEY’S DEATH –
SUBSTITUTING VALIUM, CODEINE PAINKILLERS AND SLEEPING TABLETS FOR
HEROIN.

BUT WITHIN DAYS, THEY WERE ON THE SOUTH LONDON STREETS
TRYING TO BUY DRUGS AGAIN.

IN THE STATEMENT, MISS GALBRAITH SAID: ‘WE MET A WHITE MAN
WHO ANDY SEEMED TO KNOW.

HE SAID IT WAS OUR LUCKY DAY AND HE
COULD HELP US OUT.

ANDY WENT OFF WITH THE MAN AND RETURNED SOON
AFTER.

‘HE PRODUCED A PACKET OF BROWN POWDER AND SAID HE HAD ONLY
BEEN ABLE TO BUY 10 WORTH.

‘
THE PAIR SHARED THE HEROIN BETWEEN THEM AND MISS GALBRAITH
SAID SHE IMMEDIATELY ‘WENT UNCONSCIOUS’.

SHE CAME TO SEVERAL
HOURS LATER – TO FIND DELANEY SLUMPED DEAD IN A CHAIR, THE
HEARING WAS TOLD.

PC JOHN ARMSTRONG, WHO INVESTIGATED THE DEATH, SAID ATTEMPTS
TO TRACE THE PUSHER WHO SOLD DELANEY THE DRUG HAD SO FAR BEEN
UNSUCCESSFUL.

RECORDING A VERDICT OF DEATH FROM DEPENDENCE ON DRUGS,
CORONER SIR MONTAGUE LEVINE SAID: ‘THIS IS ALMOST THE CLASSIC
PICTURE OF PEOPLE INTO DRUGS.

THERE IS NOTHING TO INDICATE THAT
THIS MAN TOOK A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF HEROIN TO END HIS LIFE.

‘HE WAS DESPERATE FOR A FIX AND MIGHT HAVE BEEN GIVEN SOME
VERY PURE HEROIN, OR ALTERNATIVELY SOME WHICH HAD BEEN
INADVERTENTLY CONTAMINATED.

‘

ENDS