A young mother died of a morphine overdose two weeks after her father passed away.

Shortly before she died Katie Walsh told a friend that she wanted to be with her father Mike, but at an inquest in Ruthin Kate Robertson, assistant coroner for North Wales (East and Central) said there was nothing to indicate that she intended to kill herself at that time.

Mr Walsh, a well-known local businessman, died at his home in Rhuallt on December 22 .

The inquest at Ruthin heard 39-year-old mother-of-one Katie, who was said to have a history of mental health problems.

The former dental nurse, who gained a black belt in karate as a teenager and also enjoyed swimming and riding, had been engaging with the mental health services including the Hafod Unit in Rhyl.

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In a statement read at the inquest her friend Mark Thomas said he was aware that she had been obtaining prescription drugs online “for her nerves”, and had known her to drink alcohol and take cocaine.

He said she had difficulty coming to terms with her father’s death and told him “I want to be with Dad”.

Mr Thomas said she was also concerned about a rash and on the evening of January 3 she called him from Glan Clwyd Hospital before taking a taxi to his home in Ffordd Terfyn, Bodelwyddan.

Mr Thomas said they both went to sleep on sofas but at 8.30am Katie could not be roused.

Mr Thomas told police that there was a bottle of morphine nearby but there didn’t seem to be any missing.

A post-mortem examination revealed the presence of several prescription drugs in her system but the cause of her death was morphine toxicity.

Recording a conclusion of a drug-related death, Ms Robertson said: “There was no indication that she intended to take her own life at that time.”

At the time of Katie’s death her mother Ann described her as “one of a kind who touched the hearts of everyone she met”.