A CORONER has issued a stark warning of the dangers of drugs misuse following the inquest of a Southampton shop manager, who died after sharing 20 lines of cocaine.

Andrew Houghton, 45, had also drank several cans of lager, but was unaware he had an underlying heart condition that made the combination especially dangerous, the hearing was told.

Deputy coroner for South-ampton and West Hampshire Simon Burge heard how Mr Houghton, a father-of-four and manager of the McColls branch in Burgess Road, Swaythling, was at home on August 1 with his partner Joanne Nodding.

She told the inquest that they listened to music, drank and took lines of cocaine, something which they did every few months.

Ms Nodding, of Green Park Road, Redbridge, said she bought the drugs from a man she met in Bevois Valley.

She said she did not think Mr Houghton was aware he had a heart condition and his general health was fine.

But in the early hours of the morning she described how Mr Houghton started to feel unwell, was sick and was sweating. Later, in bed, she woke to find him leaning across and called an ambulance when she realised he was not breathing.

Dr Sanjay Jogai, consultant histopathologist at Univers-ity Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, told the inquest that a person “abusing cocaine and alcohol” has an increased disposition to heart attack.

Mr Burge recorded that Mr Houghton died of natural causes, ruling there was no evidence the cocaine directly contributed to death. But, issuing a warning to anyone considering dabbling with drugs, he said: “The naturally occurring disease also took place in the context of significant consumption of cocaine and alcohol and that Dr Jogai said is applicable to all of us.

“If you have heart disease taking cocaine and alcohol is extremely dangerous.”