DJ Jamal Edwards died from a cardiac arrest after taking cocaine and drinking alcohol, a coroner has ruled. The entrepreneur's death, aged 31, was confirmed in February.
An inquest into his sudden passing heard he was found with three small snap bags with the remnants of white powder after he collapsed at the home of his mother, Loose Women panellist Brenda Edwards, in West London.
Assistant West London Coroner Ivor Collett today ruled that Mr Edwards died after a cardiac arrest brought on by taking cocaine and drinking, the Mirror reports.
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The DJ and founder of online R&B/Hip-Hop platform SB.TV had returned to his home in Acton after 4am after playing a DJ set in north London before he sat up drinking with a pal, Nick Hopper, who was living in an annex of the house. After a while Mr Edwards became erratic and paranoid and began throwing objects around the room before collapsing, the inquest was told.
Despite the best efforts of Mr Hopper and later his uncle, Rodney Artman, as well as paramedics, Mr Edwards did not wake up and was declared dead at 10.36am on Sunday February 20. Mr Edwards' heartbroken mum, West End and TV star Brenda, described him as "a beautiful and selfless person" in a statement read to the inquest.
Summing up at West London Coroner’s Court, Mr Collett said: "He had worked as a DJ at a venue in Islington. At around 4.30am he arrived at home and joined his close friend. They had some drinks and had arranged to smoke cannabis. Although he appeared normal at first his behaviour changed and he exhibited signs of anxiety, paranoia and irritation.
"Despite his friend’s efforts to calm him down he began throwing things around the room before collapsing on the floor. The police found drug paraphernalia, the toxicology tests found recent evidence of drug use.
"The insinuation is that Jamal had taken cocaine in sufficient quantity to cause an adverse reaction brought about by cocaine toxicity. This then caused cardiac arrhythmia which resulted in his death."
In a statement read to the hearing, Brenda Edwards said: “Jamal was a beautiful and selfless person. Since growing up with his family in Acton he made it his personal mission to open doors for others to walk through. To help people through life, to love and to laugh. And most importantly, to just make people happy."
She added: "Jamal helped so many, working tirelessly to give a platform to people. His charitable work stretched near and far, from working at homeless shelters to giving back to his roots in St Vincent and the Grenadines. We are so proud of everything Jamal achieved over the course of his 31 years and how he impacted others’ lives. We miss him so much."
Brenda previously spoke about her son's cause of death in June, prior to the inquest taking place. She said she had been in a 'state of shock' but spoke out so "no other mother or loved one should have to go through what Jamal's sister, Tanisha, and I have been through since he passed."
"These types of substances are extremely unpredictable, and we can only hope that this will encourage others to think wisely when faced with similar situations in the future. His passing has shown that any one bad decision on any one occasion can lead to devastating consequences," she said in the statement shared on June 7.
Brenda continued: "It's so important that we help drive more conversation about the unpredictability of recreational drugs and the impact they can have. How it takes just one bad decision to destroy lives. I would do anything to have my son back but that is not possible so if I can help save one life, then we will have achieved something.
"Jamal and I had one of the strongest mother/son relationships that you could imagine. We were best friends, and out of his many, many, wonderful qualities the one that made me most proud was his mission to help others - he was the most selfless person I knew."
Towards the end of her message she added: "I'm so incredibly proud of everything he achieved over the course of his 31 years; I'm proud to call him my son.... In Jamal's own words: 'The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will'. My beautiful son, you did that and then some."
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