AN aspiring police officer killed himself after struggling with training at the same time as doing a degree, an inquest has heard.

Anugrah Abraham, 21, was on a Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA) which combined studying at Leeds Trinity University and on-the-job training with West Yorkshire Police (WYP).

The 21-year-old’s father claimed his son was bullied and suffered racism during the course, which was disputed by the force.

Concluding the inquest at Rochdale Coroner’s Court on Tuesday, Joanne Kearsley, senior coroner for Manchester North, ruled Mr Abraham took his own life.

She said: “There is no evidence that any steps should have been taken which would on the balance of probabilities have made a difference to the tragic outcome.”

The family said in a statement: “We disagree with the coroner that Anu’s death was not preventable.

“Anu was set up to fail. He never had sufficient support, particularly after he told his superiors that he was considering ending his own life.

“We cannot fathom how and why the coroner has come to that conclusion. Sadly, it is too late for Anu and for our family.”

Mr Abraham, described by his family as “kind, gentle and funny”, was found dead in woodland near his home on March 4 last year, the day he was due back at work after a two-week break.

The trainee police officer, known as Anu, from Bury, Greater Manchester, had applied to join the police in October 2021 but problems started after April 2022 when he was posted to Halifax Police Station, his father Amar Abraham previously told the court.

The inquest had heard that Mr Abraham had suffered with mental health issues but had not told his family the extent of them and felt he did not want to let them down.

After complaints about Mr Abraham from another department, he had a meeting with his district line manager who told him she thought he was “massively struggling with the role”.

Ms Kearsley said: “I acknowledge that in such a pressurised job, at times, some colleagues may have felt frustration that Anu was not progressing.”

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigated allegations of bullying at WYP before Mr Abraham’s death and said there was no evidence to indicate he was “treated any differently to other student officers”.

Emily Barry, IOPC regional director, said: “We carried out a detailed investigation into a series of allegations relating to the way Anu was treated by colleagues and the support provided to him by WYP. This included whether he was treated any differently because of his race.

“We found evidence that recruitment and training procedures at that time, during the Covid-19 pandemic, were sub-standard. I am reassured that changes since lockdowns ended mean new recruits receive a greater level of support.

“However, we also identified a number of positive steps taken by supervisors in their efforts to support Anu. Our analysis of the evidence did not indicate that Anu was treated differently to other student officers at that time, and that others were similarly impacted by the issues within recruitment during the pandemic.”

Mr Abraham left in mid-February last year and went to Amsterdam with a group of friends, including Daniel Rogers.

Mr Rogers said that during the holiday Mr Abraham talked about “a lack of praise for stuff he does and the stress of being shouted at – he felt picked on for issues outside his control”.

Ms Kearsley said the prospect of returning to work “was likely to have been a source of distress” to Mr Abraham.

He came back to the UK and the day before he was due to return to work, he left his home address in the early afternoon.

He was reported missing from home at 10.50pm to Greater Manchester Police and was found dead the next day.

Ms Kearsley said: “The word tragic is probably overused by myself in this court but Anu’s death at such a young age is just that.

“He was so young with so much potential and was such a kind and caring young man.”

The coroner said she will write a prevention of future deaths report to the National Police Chiefs’ Council about the challenges in addressing mental health in policing.

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