A "nave" drug user who died after begging friends to give him some heroin was unlawfully killed, a coroner has ruled.

Christopher Wilson had been drinking heavily before being injected with the drug at his Keighley flat, the Bradford hearing was told.

Within hours of his death, 28-year-old Tracey Bradley told a support worker: "I was the one who injected him. If I hadn't injected him, he wouldn't be dead."

Later that same day, Miss Bradley -- a mother of one -- was herself dead from a heroin overdose.

Recording that 34-year-old Mr Wilson was unlawfully killed -- equivalent to a manslaughter verdict -- coroner Roger Whittaker said the rules prevented him naming any individual as the perpetrator.

But he added: "The only person who could have been in the frame for it is now dead. There is no-one living that was responsible for his death."

The inquest was told how paramedics were called to the flat at Swaledale House, Braithwaite, on the morning of March 16, 2001.

Efforts to revive Mr Wilson were unsuccessful and the police were alerted.

Tests showed that he died from the toxic effects of alcohol and heroin.

Claire Towl, a drugs and alcohol worker with Project Six, in Keighley, said that on the afternoon of March 16, Miss Bradley and her boyfriend, Jason Caswell, called to collect some syringes under the needle-swap scheme.

Mr Caswell said he had found a body earlier that day. As they were leaving, Miss Bradley revealed that it was she who had injected Mr Wilson and added: "I am partly responsible for this man's death."

She explained that Mr Wilson had begged them for some heroin, but because he had been drinking, Mr Caswell refused to give him any as he would be an overdose risk.

She had then picked up a loaded syringe, discarded some of the contents and injected the rest into Mr Wilson, who quickly showed signs of an overdose.

Attempts were made to revive him and a pulse was detected. When Miss Bradley left the flat he was snoring but next morning he was found unconscious.

Mrs Towl said both Mr Caswell and Miss Bradley were very upset and she was concerned that they might go away and take drugs "to numb the pain".

That evening, Miss Bradley died shortly after being admitted to Airedale General Hospital, Steeton.

Announcing his findings, the coroner said he was satisfied that north London-born Mr Wilson was a nave user of heroin, having taken the drug on six or seven occasions.

He also accepted that Mr Wilson had wanted to take heroin that night and had pleaded to be given some.

It was Miss Bradley who injected it into him and it was that dose which killed him, said Mr Whittaker.