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A brilliant mathematician who came back to North Wales after a conviction for kicking a cenotaph wreath left him fearing for his safety was found dead on a beach in Llandudno.

Simon Colley, 41, narrowly avoided jail after the incident at a Manchester war memorial, but said he didn't feel safe in the city afterwards.

Mr Colley, who attended Rydal school and got a first class maths degree at university, had turned to drink because of his bi-polar disorder.

An inquest into his death heard the talented tennis player had inherited a sum of money from his parents and used it to buy a flat in Manchester, but ended up with drug and alcohol problems and spent time in prison.

After the cenotaph incident was reported in the media, he felt unsafe in the city. After a short spell in hospital, he told mental health workers he said he wanted to get clean and move away.

The inquest at Llandudno today heard he may have returned to North Wales as a 'safe haven', his family having settled there in 1985 after a time in Hong Kong, where Mr Colley was born.

In a statement to the inquest, Mr Colley's brother Ian said: "He wanted to sell his flat and may have been thinking of moving back to Llandudno to be safe.

“He was dealt some horrible cards but didn’t learn from his mistakes."

After being released from treatment on April 26 - a month after the cenotaph incident - he made his way to Llandudno.

On April 29, Llandudno RNLI crew member Andrew Jones was looking through his camera when he spotted a body on the beach near the boathouse .

He called a colleague and the police, and Mr Colley was certified dead at the scene. He was wearing boxer shorts and a T-shirt but his trainers and other clothes were in a neat pile near the road.

Recording a conclusion of misadventure, Mr Gittins said that although Mr Colley had had mental health issues for some time he had not indicated that he intended to harm himself.

“It is possible he may have considered the area a safe haven,” he said.

He did not appear to have committed an impulsive act in entering the sea because he had been meticulous in leaving his clothes neatly folded, and he may just intended to go for a swim.