A young woman whose body was found in undergrowth 12 days after she was reported missing died of cocaine toxicity.

Leah Daley was found dead by two walkers on Folkestone seafront, about 700 yards from where she had last been seen.

The heartbreaking discovery at The Warren on May 17 was made following a widespread search involving a series of emergency crews, volunteers and members of the public.

An inquest into the waitress’s death was opened today at Oakwood House, Maidstone, where the cause of death was recorded as “cocaine toxicity”.

Cocaine toxicity occurs within minutes to hours of excessive cocaine use, whereby symptoms include rapid heart rate, high blood pressure, hyperthermia, excessive sweating and agitation.

Patients may die suddenly before receiving specialist medical treatment.

Leah was reported missing on Sunday, May 5, with her family at the time describing her disappearance as “totally out of character”.

She was seen at 7pm that day at The Warren - a seafront beauty spot she had enjoyed since childhood.

The court heard during the moments leading up to Leah’s disappearance she had spoken to a friend and said she was going for a walk to clear her head.

Leah was listed as a high risk missing person sparking a huge effort to locate her consisting of numerous police appeals, an 8,700-member Facebook group called Leah’s Search and circulation of the hashtag #findleahdaley on social media.

She was found 12 days later further along the coast in undergrowth by a footpath, where tributes have been placed in her memory.

Police confirmed her death was not being treated as suspicious.

Previously, Leah’s mum Hannah told KentOnline the family would “never get over” how long it took them to find her daughter.

“It took them 12 days to find Leah, who was apparently there all the time, despite having drone footage,” she added.

Following the discovery of the young woman’s body, a vigil was held in the town and the family thanked the colossal efforts of the local community in the search.

However, days later the tributes left at The Leas bandstand in the town were mysteriously taken.

This was reported to police, but the case was later closed.

The inquest was adjourned and is due to open again on November 1.