An oil executive found dead when fire gutted his £1.8 million home was hooked on “designer drugs” bought off the internet, an inquest heard today.
The body of finance director Adriano Bussandri, 51, was found in a loft conversion at his west London home buried under the debris of a dormer window and near to a letter opener and a screwdriver.
He had been so badly burnt in the blaze that dental records had to be analysed for identification. Police launched a murder investigation, but later decided that wounds found on Mr Bussandri’s body were self-inflicted and not caused by anyone else, Westminster coroner’s court heard today.
The coroner ruled the executive was “the author of his own destruction.”
Mr Bussandri was involved in a road accident about 11 years ago and suffered a brain haemorrhage, the hearing was told. Soon afterwards he began taking non-prescription psychoactive drugs and laughing gas and had been treated in The Priory clinic.
It is believed he bought the chemical compound drugs — such as MDPV (Methylenedioxypyrovalerone), which was found in his system during a post-mortem — online from Dutch and German websites. MDPV is often sold online as bath salts.
Reading from GP Alison Joy’s report, assistant coroner Dr William Dolman said: “He had a history of depression and drug dependency.”
Detective Sergeant Richard Reynolds told the hearing that officers were able to rule out any third party involvement in the fire.
However, he added that there was evidence of drug use at the address.
He said: “In effect Mr Bussandri did have a struggle against drugs and drug addiction. There were numerous attempts to treat that addiction.”
Det Sgt Reynolds added: “When you break down things like bath salts and plant food, you come up with the chemical compounds, and you then start to get designer drugs. Availability is crucial to source these chemicals and to arrange for their importation.”
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The body of Mr Bussandri, a British citizen of Italian origin, was discovered by firefighters at his Putney home at about 5am on February 8 after neighbours raised the alarm.
After a post-morten pathologist Robert Chapman recorded a cause of death as inhalation of fire fumes, contributed to by MDPV toxicity.
Concluding that Mr Bussandri died as a result of an accident, Dr Dolman said: “To an extent, the deceased was the author of his own destruction, as we have heard that the drugs were found in his system.”
He was not working at the time of his death and lived separately from his wife, Marisa, and daughter Sabrina.
