A HAMPSHIRE man took his own life because he feared MI5 were trying to kill him, an inquest heard.

Georgie Grace had been suffering from bouts of insomnia and paranoia.

His wife of 14 years, Chantel Grace said: “He became convinced that MI5 were after him, and that they were trying to poison him at work.”

“He would often say that his tea tasted weird when he had made it himself.”

A report from his GP said that the 45-year-old had previously thought of hanging himself but that he felt like it was a selfish thing to do.

The inquest heard how on May 5 Mr Grace had been involved in a car accident and injured his head.

On May 27 the father-of-four attempted to take his life by taking an overdose, but later said that he regretted this because he did not wish to die.

A mental health report from Southern Health said Mr Grace had limited engagement with the team and would often minimise his symptoms and put on a brave face.

His daughter said that her father did not talk to his family about his problems.

On June 26, Mr Grace had an argument with his wife, at their home in Heathlands, in Shedfield, about his refusal to get help and his increasingly erratic behaviour.

“I told him that enough was enough and that he needed to move out of the family home until he had sorted himself out,” she said.

Soon after she found Mr Grace’s body in the garden shed. She cut him down and called the emergency services.

A post mortem report confirmed that Mr Grace had died of asphyxiation and hanging.

PC Matt Morgan who attended the scene said that officers could find no evidence that a crime had been committed.

Assistant coroner Sarah Whitby concluded that Mr Grace’s death was the result of suicide.