A business owner who was overjoyed at surviving cancer took his own life after privately struggling with financial difficulties.
Adrian Venni was discovered by police at a disused gravel pit in Wereham after a friend rang police following receipt of a concerning text message.
The 56-year-old of Station Road, Watlington, was found unresponsive on April 10 on private woodland he owned near West Dereham.
Despite the efforts of paramedics, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
At an inquest into his death, Norfolk Coroner’s Court heard he lived “a very normal life” with his wife, Karen.
The couple, who had been married for 32 years, were partners in a renewable energy company.
“I HAD NO IDEA”
On the morning of his death, he had taken Karen a cup of tea and she waved him off at around 8am as he left for a board meeting.
In a statement to the court, Mrs Venni said: “This was the last time I saw and spoke with Adrian.
“When he left in the morning, there was nothing unusual about how he was behaving. I thought everything was quite normal and I had no indication of anything happening to him.
“He left the house in his usual good mood. All seemed completely normal.
“Adrian always appeared a very happy man who looked after everyone and made sure they were okay.
“There was no indication to me or my family that something was the matter with Adrian and that that he was about to harm himself.
“I had absolutely no idea that this was going to happen.”
MONEY WORRIES
In 2019, Mr Venni was disqualified from being a company director for nine years.
He had previously been a director of King's Lynn-based Anthill Plant Hire Ltd but provided false information to a factoring company in 2017 which ended up more than £800,000 out of pocket.
It lost £845,826 after Anthill went into administration and ceased trading in July 2017, owing creditors more than £1m.
He also sold two excavators that were still on finance for £90,000.
None of the money was paid to the finance company, which recovered the vehicles and caused the purchaser a loss of at least £108,000.
On receiving a nine-year ban, Mr Venni did not dispute any of the matters of unfitness as set out by the Insolvency Service.
THERE WERE “NO SIGNS”
Further evidence read out at coroner’s court heard that Mr Venni had previously sought help for depression from the wellbeing service in the two years before his death.
He attended online talking therapies and counselling.
His GP and the Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust said he did not display any signs or symptoms of suicidal ideation or intentions to take his life.
On the day of his death, he sent a text message to a friend saying goodbye and shared his location via What Three Words. A suicide note was also discovered inside his car.
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Mrs Venni added: “As a family we have looked into many areas of Adrian’s life since the incident.
“One area that has cropped up is his financial business.
“I have been told that he has borrowed money from friends and family, but asked them to keep it a secret from me.”
The senior coroner for Norfolk, Jacqueline Lake, said Mr Venni died by suicide.
HE WILL BE MISSED
Mrs Venni added: “Adrian and I lived a very normal life.
“We would often go for a walk before Adrian started work. And, when he finished work, we would work out in the garden.
“At a weekend, Adrian would go rowing in the mornings - he used to be a member of a rowing club – and when he returned home, we would often spend time in the garden.
“On Sunday afternoons, we would play a game of Scrabble and share a bottle of wine.
“He was always a very happy person and always looked at the brighter side of life.
“He survived cancer around ten years ago and would say such things as how happy he was to have survived because it’s a beautiful day outside.”
- Samaritans can be contacted 24/7 by calling 116 123. Alternatively, the NHS First Response Service can be reached on 111, selecting option 2.
- To pay tribute to a loved one, email norfolkobituaries@newsquest.co.uk
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