Graduate’s world left in tatters by attack

A GRADUATE whose life went into a downward spiral after a vicious attack was found dead at his home in Failsworth.

Carl Wilson (46) worked in research and development at Manchester University after gaining a degree and an MA in economics.

But he started drinking heavily after he was ferociously kicked and punched by three people while walking his dogs outside his then home in Higher Broughton two days before Christmas, 2001.

An inquest heart how his relationship broke down, he stopped working and became homeless.

Mr Wilson then lived with his mother, June, in Middleton and managed to get a home in Oldham through a shared equity scheme, but lost this when he was made bankrupt.

A statement from Mrs Wilson, who now lives in Scotland, described how the attack changed his character and his views.

No one is believed to have ever been charged and she said: “He thought he could drink and it did not affect him.”

Mr Wilson, who grew up in Manchester, underwent periods of detox, giving up drink for days, weeks and even months at a time.

He took medication for depression, but his mother told how he was close to his two brothers and enjoyed running, mountain biking and keeping fit.

“Apart from the drink problems, he was fit and well until the last six months of his life,” she said

Mr Wilson had previously been admitted to hospital as a result of his drinking.

He was found dead at his home in Wrigley Head in May this year by two support workers.

The cause of death was alcohol intoxication and a propensity to internal bleeding caused by liver cirrhosis.

Coroner Simon Nelson heard how Mr Wilson had worked for an agency doing jobs from cleaning to office work to fund his MA.

He said: “As so often happens there was an incident, a single incident, which changed the course of his life.

“He was attacked while walking his dogs and following that attack his outlook changed. He became homeless, became bankrupt and lost his house — and effectively his dignity.”

Recording a verdict of dependency on alcohol, he added: “For someone who was educated so highly and someone who had so much potential, it all seems to have been cut short by that vicious attack.”