A young man tragically died the day after taking ecstasy, following a night out with friends where he began “speaking a strange language”, an inquest was told. Jakub Jarzecki, who hailed from Italy, had just completed a night shift on May 1 and decided to go for drinks with coworkers, including his brother-in-law Mateusz, to unwind after one of their colleagues was suspended.
The group ended up at a house and after having a drink, Mateusz left but later received a worrying call around 8am informing him that Jakub was in distress, the inquest heard.
Paramedics were summoned at 9.32am and discovered Jakub exhibiting a critically high heart rate of 150 beats per minute, as well as increased temperature and breathing rate, according to the Manchester Evening News. En route to Royal Blackburn Hospital, Jakub suffered seizures and devastatingly went into cardiac arrest shortly before arrival at A&E. He passed away 30 minutes later.
Toxicology reports indicated lethal amounts of MDMA in Jakub’s system. His sister Klaudia expressed her family’s profound grief, stating: “It’s been the hardest time of our lives trying to cope with what’s happened.”
Katarzyna, a colleague and friend of Jakub’s, where he had collapsed, remembered him saying: “Jakub was a cheerful person who I could joke with but who I could also talk to about serious things. At 7pm I started work and one man was suspended from work and sent home.”
In an emotional statement, Mateusz said, “We said we should all meet and have a drink as he might not come back to work. After work we went to my house in Nelson. Something was happening to Jakub. His eyes were open and he was speaking in a strange language. We didn’t know who he was talking to. He was behaving strangely.
“I think they were all taking drugs as I can’t think why they wouldn’t call an ambulance sooner. I just don’t understand why they didn’t call an ambulance.”
Assistant Coroner Sian Jones declared drug involvement during the inquiry, noting: “When his brother-in-law arrived, even to a lay person it was clear it wasn’t a case of someone who was drunk. He was incoherent and talking in a strange language. The person whose phone he used was still reluctant to call an ambulance and one has to wonder why that was.”
She further commented on the situation’s gravity: “The reluctance to call an ambulance suggests to me that at least some of those present were aware something has been taken and were worried, maybe due to their employment.”
Jakub’s co-worker Ryan Holt launched a GoFundMe page in remembrance, which has already crossed the £2,000 target for funeral expenses. The fundraising page shares: “Our colleague Jakub sadly passed away on May 2. He started with the company in February 2022 and in that time he has spent time working as part of the night dairy team and the night freezer team and built relationships right across the warehouse.”
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