Woman who took ketamine on first night at university died due to ‘misadventure’

A high-flying student died on her first night at university after taking ketamine given to her “by another”, a coroner has ruled.

Jeni Larmour, 18, from Newtonhamilton, Northern Ireland, died hours after arriving at Newcastle University in October 2020.

The former deputy head girl consumed a lethal combination of alcohol and ketamine, a tranquilliser she sniffed with new flatmate Kavir Kalliecharan, Newcastle Coroner’s Court was told.

On the second day of the inquest, coroner Karen Dilks concluded Ms Larmour’s death was due to misadventure, defining that as unintentional acts and events.

Having heard from Mr Kalliecharan, other student witnesses, a Home Office pathologist and police, Mrs Dilks gave her view of the circumstances of the talented teenager’s death “on the balance of probabilities”.

She said Ms Larmour had arrived in Newcastle that day and drunk alcohol with her new flat mates between 5-7pm.

Mrs Dilks said: “Later that evening, while her judgement was impaired due to alcohol, Jeni took a quantity of ketamine provided for her by another, the combined effects of which led to her death.”

Mr Kalliecharan, 20, from Leeds, was not charged with supplying the ketamine and told police it was Ms Larmour’s.

Specialist police officers using sniffer dogs searched the flat in Park View halls and found ketamine, cannabis and MDMA in Mr Kalliecharan’s room but he insisted the ketamine was not his.

No other drugs were found in student rooms in the flat, including Ms Larmour’s, the inquest heard.

Andrew Metcalfe, then an acting detective sergeant with Northumbria Police, said the video revealed no evidence of Ms Larmour or Mr Kalliecharan coercing or pressuring the other to take drugs.

Immediately after Ms Larmour’s death, Mr Kalliecharan told flatmates he felt it was his “fault”, explaining at the inquest he felt “guilt” not in a criminal sense but through “moral responsibility”.

Mrs Dilks urged the university to look again at its induction course on drink and drugs, given that none of the flatmates who gave evidence at the inquest could recall any information from it.

The coroner said the university’s work on drink and drugs advice was continually evolving and it was working well with other organisations on its programme.