Party-goer died after swallowing two spoonfuls of pure caffeine powder - equivalent to 70 cans of Red Bull



The two spoonfuls of caffeine powder ingested by Michael Lee Bedford was equivalent in strength to 70 cans of Red Bull (file picture)



A party-goer died after swallowing two spoonfuls of internet-bought pure caffeine powder with the same strength as 70 cans of Red Bull, an inquest heard yesterday.



Michael Bedford washed the substance down with an energy drink, leaving him with a massive 251mg of caffeine per litre of blood in his system.



He had bought the white powder online for just £3.29 per 100mg.



Despite coming with a warning that only one sixteenth of a teaspoon should be taken Mr Bedford took two full spoons of the powder.



Mr Bedford's friends described how they had been at a party together and one said he had seen him swallow the powder.



Shortly afterwards, he became ill, vomited, began slurring his words before he collapsed.



Mr Bedford, from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, was taken to the King's Mill Hospital where he later died.



Speaking outside Nottingham Coroners Court yesterday, Mr Bedford's aunt Sue Burton said he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.



She said: 'It's legal to take, you can buy it on the internet, there's nothing you can do, we're just so sad he was so young.



'He was in the wrong place at the wrong time, if he had known it was going to kill him he wouldn't have taken it, but it has and there's nothing we can do about that.'



The coroner said the level of caffeine Mr Bedford had taken was 70 times more than usually found in a high energy drink.



Nottingham coroner Dr Nigel Chapman said: 'Caffeine is so freely available on the internet for £3.29 but it's so lethal if taken in the wrong dose and here we see the consequence.



'So many people are upset and distraught by the death of Michael.



'This should serve as a warning that caffeine is so freely available on the internet but so lethal if the wrong dosage is taken.



'It is a tragic accident, not suspicious - he wasn't doing anything wrong, it was just the danger of the dose he took.



'He's left a huge hole in all of your lives from taking something so freely available on the internet.'



Dr Chapman recorded a verdict of accidental death.

