A beloved father and funny and caring partner was found dead beneath his vehicle in his garage, hours after his partner and care worker called police with their concerns for his welfare. Merrick Alan Parker, 56, sadly took his own life after a lengthy battle with his mental health.
At an inquest into Mr Parker’s death, held at Swansea Coroners’ Court on June 1, the court heard Mr Parker was an “old-fashioned” man who found it difficult to engage with mental health support. Whilst he had previously sought help, his mental health had significantly deteriorated over time and he had stopped engaging with mental health support services in the weeks before his death.
After his partner left for work one morning last November, Mr Parker locked himself in the garage at their home and took his own life.
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Mr Parker was born in the Ely area of Cambridge and spent part of his childhood in Poole in Dorset with his mother and sister, after his parents split up. He moved to south Wales at the age of 10 and spent part of his teenage years working in a warehouse in Haverfordwest.
At the age of 23, Mr Parker moved to Llanelli where he took up work in the construction industry and was involved in the Swansea Plantasia Project. It was said he really enjoyed manual labour and working on properties and gardens and on his own homes too.
Mr Parker later moved to Swiss Valley, Llanelli, and met his partner Sharon Bevan. The couple were together for 16 years, until Mr Parker’s passing, and their relationship was said to be a “happy” one, Swansea Coroners’ Court heard. In a statement, Ms Bevan said her partner was a “man’s man” and was “stubborn and grumpy but funny and intelligent”.
Throughout their relationship, Mr Parker struggled with his mental health, especially after his mother died in 2008 and his sister in 2010. And, in 2012, Mr Parker faced further change in his life after he had to leave his job after being involved in a physical altercation with a colleague.
Whilst Mr Parker had always faced challenges with his mental health, and Ms Bevan was aware he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, by 2020, Ms Bevan noticed Mr Parker’s mood had changed further. He had become paranoid and withdrawn and, by March, 2021, he divulged to Ms Bevan that he thought their neighbours were watching him. Around this time, Mr Parker attempted to take his own life but was found by Ms Bevan and taken to hospital, where he was sectioned and received some mental health support.
After being discharged, Mr Parker still exhibited symptoms of paranoia and he soon told Ms Bevan he thought the authorities had “bugged” their home. By July that year, Mr Parker had begun to talk about killing people and Sharon felt he was “psychotic”.
With this in mind, Ms Bevan moved out of the couple’s home and into a women’s refuge centre, but she arranged to return to the family home on July 7. Then, she found Mr Parker had seriously injured himself and he was taken to hospital and sectioned for three weeks.
After this hospital stay, Mr Parker became “deeply depressed,” the court heard, especially as he had limited movement in his wrists due to injuries he had caused himself previously. It was said he had appeared to fall into a “spiral of depression”.
The couple decided to move house and settled in Pontarddulais, but Mr Parker felt “uneasy” there and by May, 2022, he was leading a very independent life with “no friends, no social life and no hobbies that would take him out of his house”, but he never mentioned suicide or his previous suicide attempts to Ms Bevan, the court heard.
Six weeks prior to his death, Mr Parker appeared to be “psychotic” again, a statement read in court stated. He agreed to have help at home and accepted visits from nurses, but would starve himself and ignore their advice between their visits.
Mr Parker’s mental health continued to deteriorate and Ms Bevan encouraged him to speak with a care worker, but he declined. After leaving the couple’s home and arriving at her workplace on the morning of November 21, 2022, Ms Bevan called Mr Parker’s care co-ordinator to raise her concerns on his mental health.
The care co-ordinator later made several phone calls to Mr Parker, and when he didn’t answer, she informed the police. Swansea Coroners’ Court heard it was several hours before police attended Mr Parker’s address as the situation had been reported as a “medical incident”.
Officers met with Ms Bevan at her and Mr Parker’s home and Ms Bevan entered the property to look for Mr Parker. She soon told officers she couldn’t find him anywhere, but believed he had to be nearby as his phone and wallet were on the kitchen table. Ms Bevan and police officers soon realised the property’s garage had been locked from the inside.
After breaking down the garage door, officers found Mr Parker deceased beneath his van. Paramedics were called to the scene and they confirmed Mr Parker had died. DCI Abi Doxsey, for South Wales Police, told the court there was no evidence to suggest any third party involvement in Mr Parker’s passing.
In a family statement read by DCI Doxsey in court, Mr Parker was described as an “intelligent, well-read, loving and witty” man. The acting senior coroner, Colin Phillips, added that he was an “intelligent and hardworking man who preferred a quiet life”.
“He suffered with his mental health and was quite old fashioned – he didn’t seek help,” senior coroner Mr Phillips added. “[Mr Parker] was gripped by depression and [only sought help from mental health services] intermittently."
Swansea Coroners’ Court heard details of the way in which Mr Parker died and the coroner concluded that the activity had been a “methodical act” and accepted a post-mortem report which found Mr Parker had sustained a “severe injury to the head”.
“I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities, firstly that the act was carried out by Merrick [Mr Parker] himself and secondly that he had intended to take his life. It was a deliberate and determined, methodical way [of taking his own life].
Mr Phillips concluded that Mr Parker’s injuries had been self-inflicted and that he had died by suicide, reporting a medical cause of death of blunt force head injury consistent with crush injury. He expressed his condolences and formally closed the inquest.
Tribute to Merrick Alan Parker
In a statement shared following the inquest, Mr Parker's partner Sharon Bevan shared a tribute to him with WalesOnline. She said: "Mez - what a crazy dude you were. Intelligent, humorous and definitely unique. So sad you had to leave this world the way you did. Miss you so much, love you always. Sharon."
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