The case featured in the Chief Coroner\u2019s latest Recommendations Recap, which was released today and contains summaries of coronial recommendations and comments made between October 1 and December 31, 2025.<\/p>\n
In her decision from October, Coroner Megan Armistead said there was no evidence to suggest Mark intended to take his life.<\/p>\n
She found he died while engaged in an autoerotic act in private. <\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, he was unable to control the system that he had constructed and succumbed to asphyxia,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Coroner Armistead<\/a> has joined others in New Zealand to warn of the risk of death while engaging in autoerotic asphyxiation, which can occur quickly. <\/p>\n \u201cAs other coroners have done before in similar cases, in the interest of continued public awareness, I make a general comment that those who engage in autoerotic asphyxiation should be aware of the high risk of death when exploring the intentional restriction of oxygen.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018Normal, cheerful self\u2019 days before death<\/p>\n The student worked part-time and lived with his family. <\/p>\n He managed diagnosed mental health<\/a> conditions with medication and continued private psychiatric care, but had no reported history of suicide attempts or ideation, Coroner Armistead said.<\/p>\n In late 2021 his psychiatrist reported he was \u201cflourishing\u201d, his studies were going well and he had a busy but balanced life.<\/p>\n Just days before his death, his GP reported he seemed his \u201cnormal, cheerful self\u201d and that his mental health had appeared stable compared to the preceding two years.<\/p>\n One night in 2022, Mark was home with his brother while their parents were on holiday. <\/p>\n About 6pm, the pair walked past each other and said \u201chello\u201d. <\/p>\n James recalled Mark appeared normal and didn\u2019t notice anything out of the ordinary. <\/p>\n Mark went to his room and remained there for the rest of the night, the coroner said in her findings released to NZME.<\/p>\n James stayed in his room until about 5pm the following day. <\/p>\n When he emerged, he saw his brother\u2019s bedroom door was closed but did not think that was unusual.<\/p>\n Concerns over no reply to text messages<\/p>\n Later that night, when James was speaking with their mother she mentioned she was concerned that Mark had not replied to her text messages. <\/p>\n About 11pm, James went to Mark\u2019s room, knocked on the door and called out but there was no response. <\/p>\n He tried opening the door but couldn\u2019t, so forced it open and found his brother face down on the floor next to his computer desk, naked except for a scarf around his neck. <\/p>\n James phoned emergency services and started CPR but recalled it was \u201cdifficult to hear the 111-call taker\u201d because of the music playing from Mark\u2019s computer.<\/p>\n As James tried to stop the music he noticed a bungee cord tied around his brother\u2019s neck. <\/p>\n James recalled his brother \u201clooked very pale\u201d and his legs were a \u201cdark purple colour\u201d. <\/p>\n When he rolled his brother over, he noticed blood coming from his nose. He checked for a pulse but could not find one. <\/p>\nHato Hone St John Ambulance were called, and confirmed the man had died.
\nPhoto \/ Hato Hone St John<\/p>\n