A Maughold man called 999 and told police he was going to commit suicide moments before killing himself at home, an inquest has been told today.

It heard a recording of the phone call from 33-year-old Scott Clark to emergency services on the morning of April 9.

His body was found at his home on Corony Hill a short time later.

Mr Clark told the switchboard operator he had contemplated suicide and now was ready to commit suicide and wanted the authorities to know.

The operator tried to get him to stay on the phone but he hung up.

Police arrived at his house at 8.46am – shortly after the call – and Mr Clark was found with a gun shot wound to his head.

Later searches found he had left farewell messages for family and close friends on his laptop.

It was clear, Coroner of Inquests John Needham said, that Mr Clark didn’t want family members to have the trauma of finding his body, so alerted emergency services to his intentions.

In recording a verdict of suicide, Mr Needham described Mr Clark as a very caring and deeply spiritual man who was in a contemplative and mellow mood on the day he died and would be missed by family and all those who knew him.