A 42-year-old man died from severe burns and smoke inhalation after a barn used to cultivate cannabis caught fire, an inquest heard.

Danny Price’s body was found in an outbuilding at Forstal Farm, Loose, which was primarily used to store hay for horses.

Inside the open-fronted building was a container with high powered lights being fed by stolen electricity.

Mr Price’s body, discovered away from the cannabis set-up, was not recovered until most of the inferno had been extinguished. A family member used a JCB to clear the hay.

Speaking at an inquest his estranged wife, Caroline Price, and brother, Ben Price, said they had no clue he was cultivating the class B drug.

The last person to see Mr Price alive was his son Jimmy, who was 18 at the time.

A written statement from him said he last saw his father outside the barn shortly before the fire started on Friday, May 31.

He drove off, but as he got to the end of the road a distressed neighbour called to tell him the barn was on fire.

Earlier in the day Mr Price was seen by his girlfriend of nearly four years, Sharon Carpenter.

She had been communicating with him by text throughout the day with the last message coming at 2.18pm. He was also seen tending to the farm’s horses early in the morning by his wife.

Despite being separated for four years the pair remained close and Mr Price regularly visited the farm, off Forstal Lane, which he co-owns with his brother, to see his children.

Investigators have been unable to determine the cause of the fire.

In a written statement Emma Wilson, a forensic scientist who conducted an investigation for the fire service, identified a number of potential causes.

These included a discarded cigarette, faulty wiring, microbial activity in the hay or exposure to a naked flame.

Investigating officer DI Christopher Benson also said the wires had not been fitted professionally.

Sitting at the Archbishop’s Palace, in Mill Street, Coroner Patricia Harding ruled a narrative conclusion.

At the end of the hearing she said: “The cause of the fire has not been determined although there is no evidence of third party involvement in Daniel Price’s death.

“His reason for being in the barn is unclear.”

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