A man who stole almost £60,000 from his father stabbed himself to death to avoid going to prison, an inquest heard.

Graham Smith of Roman Close, Blue Bell Hill, Chatham, was due to appear before court in October after he pleaded guilty to fraudulently gaining £57,445.46 from his dad’s bank account.

The 54-year-old was said to have taken the money when he got into financial difficulties after giving up work to become the sole carer for his ill parents.

But just hours before he was due to be sentenced in court, Mr Smith took his own life because he was "terrified" of what might happen to him in prison.

Speaking at an inquest, friend of 20 years, David Vincent said: "He was terrified, not that he had done it, but he was afraid of what might happen to him in prison. He had no experience of what prison was like. He just had a fear of going to prison."

After being unable to reach Mr Smith for three days and then finding out he had not attended court, Mr Vincent phoned the police and reported his concerns.

Police then visited the address in Roman Close on Monday, October 15 and found Mr Smith dead in his bathtub with multiple stab wounds.

It is believed he had been there since Friday evening.

Mr Smith, a former employer at Remploy, was said to have got into financial difficulties in 2010 after running out of his savings and he was also said to be struggling to cope with his mother’s death.

Unable to pay his rent and look after himself and his father, Mr Smith started to take money, until his father noticed and reported it to the police.

Mr Vincent added: "Graham was an honourable person. He hadn’t worked for five years because he was looking after his parents. He was in denial about it and I know he claimed no benefits."

Coroner Alison Summers recorded the death as suicide by multiple stab wounds.