A famous businesswoman was found dead after her whole life turned upside down and 'messed up' by a man who allegedly faked having stage four cancer in a bid to control her.
Jennifer Joynt, 36, a supply chain manager, was tragically found dead in her bed by her dad, after he forced his way into her home in Manchester on February 26, report Manchester Evening News.
Her family became concerned about her after they hadn't heard from her in days.
An inquest into her death, held at South Manchester Coroner’s Court, heard the woman - who was born in Stockport - had experienced problems with her mental health in the past. The court heard that family and friends supported her during these difficult periods of her life.
The inquest also outlined that while there were signs Ms Joynt was considering suicide, she did not appear to have taken her own life.
Notes addressed to her family and friends in notebooks were found by police, scattered around her room. There were also notes on her phone, as well as video messages recorded for her loved ones, in the months before her death.
Police found that while some of these notes had been edited on her mobile, there was nothing to indicate they were true indications that she intended to take her own life.
Similar notes had also been written on other occasions, which had not led to her attempting to take her own life.
There was evidence that Ms Joynt had attempted to purchase a particular drug, which has appeared in several other suicide inquests recently. While police were able to establish that most of the companies the 36-year-old reached out to had declined the sale.
There was one purchase attempt that had not been declined, but officers were unable to establish whether the sale had gone through and whether the substance was delivered.
Police said they could not find any evidence of packaging or a container for this substance in the home, although when Miss Joynt’s phone was unlocked by officers, they discovered that she had been visiting a site instructing her on what medications to take alongside this substance to take her own life.
Traces of these drugs were found within her system.
Professor Hunt, the pathologist who performed the post mortem examination of Miss Joynt, gave her cause of death as aspiration of gastric contents. This means that food or fluid she had consumed had caused a blockage in her windpipe or lungs.
Toxicology results showed a range of non-lethal levels of various drugs in her system, but these were not highlighted as contributing factors to Miss Joynt’s death.
Ms Joynt's mum, Margaret, told the court about her “bubbly and strong” daughter who “embraced life” and loved fitness and travelling.
However, she also said an extremely “toxic” relationship in the months before her daughter's death consumed her, with the young woman unable to let go of her partner who allegedly faked having stage four cancer in a bid to control her.
After a tough few months of set-backs, things started to look up for Miss Joynt, with the young woman in the process of buying a new house, set to start a new job just weeks after her death, and even taking trips away with friends and making plans to spend time with those around her.
Her dad told the court his daughter spoke to people that were struggling and actively tried to help them and “just seemed to love life so much”, leaving her family feeling like she was finally turning a corner and starting to get better after a horrific ordeal.
Senior coroner Alison Mutch recorded a narrative conclusion that Miss Joynt died from complications of asphyxia, as it was impossible to tell on the balance of probabilities whether or not the young woman had ingested something in an attempt to take her own life.
Addressing Ms Joynt’s family she said: “As a family you were devoted to each other and as parents you had supported her. She was obviously very popular and very successful, and was extremely well thought of at work and she had a very bright future ahead of her. She was extremely fortunate to have such a caring family.”
Ms Joynt’s family established the Jenni Joynt Foundation, which aims to help others who have faced, or are facing similar mental health challenges to which she succumbed.
The 39-year-old was a well-known and hugely popular figure across the business travel industry. She had worked as a travel manager at NatWest Group/RBS since 2016, and was best-known as a long-time member of the Institute of Travel Management (ITM) and as an active and passionate member of its Northern Regional Committee.
During her spare time, it is reported that she enjoyed a range of fitness activities, including open water swimming.
ITM celebrated her life at its annual conference in Birmingham in April, with its CEO, Scott Davies, paying tribute to her. He said: “Jenni was an incredibly special, vibrant and energetic member of the ITM community. Her natural desire to make everyone feel welcome and valued set the tone at our events and struck anyone that she met.
“Jenni’s warmth, humour, empathy and talent were admired by so many of us. Jenni would simply light up a room and any situation you can imagine – a business meeting, an education session, a conference, a gym class, an evening in a bar – was just infinitely better if Jenni was there.
“We miss her so much already and we will always remember her, and we will look to find positive ways to help those facing struggles any way we can.”
The Samaritans is available 24/7 if you need to talk. You can contact them for free by calling 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or head to the website to find your nearest branch. You matter.
