Conspiracy theorist Max Spiers 'died after taking anxiety drug'

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Briton, who had pneumonia, died in Poland after taking Turkish equivalent of Xanax, inquest hears

Maxwell Bates-Spiers
Maxwell Bates-Spiers died in Warsaw in July 2016. Photograph: Facebook

A British conspiracy theorist died in Poland after taking a Turkish equivalent of the drug Xanax while suffering from pneumonia, an inquest heard.

Maxwell Bates-Spiers, widely known as Max Spiers, had travelled to Poland to speak at a conference in April 2016. He died aged 39 in Warsaw on 16 July that year, at the house of Monika Duval, who let him stay with her after they met at the conference.

An inquest held on Monday in Sandwich, Kent, heard a cause of death given by a pathologist was complications caused by “pneumonia and intoxication by drugs”.

Bates-Spiers, a drug user who had been addicted to heroin and crack cocaine, bought “eight to 10” boxes of the Turkish equivalent of Xanax during a holiday to Cyprus with Duval from 27 June to 11 July 2016 and took several tablets on the day of his death.

A postmortem examination also discovered levels of oxycodone, an opioid, in his system at a “potentially fatal” level, the inquest heard. A pathologist also discovered there was “a rather widespread pneumonia”.

A statement from Duval, whom the hearing was told had an “informal relationship” with Bates-Spiers, said he fell asleep on her sofa after taking the Xanax, before she noticed he had stopped breathing several hours later. He then began to vomit as she tried resuscitation while waiting for paramedics, the inquest heard.

She said: “I noticed he had something in his mouth, some remnants of food, so I turned him on to one side and saw gastric fluids pouring out of him – brown liquid, like somewhat tea coloured.”

Paramedics were called, but Bates-Spiers died at the scene, the inquest heard. A summary of the Polish prosecutor’s office’s inquiry, which was read to the inquest, said he had exchanged numbers with Duval after they attended the Earth Project conference.

He was described as a journalist “dealing with the topics of conspiracy theories and paranormal phenomena,” the inquest heard.

Duval agreed shortly after they met to let him stay at her house, rather than take his return plane ticket back to the UK. After picking him up from his hotel, she took him to a doctor’s surgery and bought him medication worth more than 1,500 Polish złoty (about £315).

The inquest was told he often suffered illness while staying with her and “sometimes he felt weak and sometimes he had problems with focus and attention”.

He also complained “satanic groups” were after him in the lead-up to his death, Duval’s statement said.

Referring to the day of his death, a statement from the Polish prosecutors office said: “He probably took 10 tablets of Turkish Xanax, at the same time explaining to Ms Duval that it was an adequate dose because its Turkish equivalent has a different dosage.”

The PPO said the death “was caused by natural causes” and “excluded participation of further persons,” the inquest heard.

British toxicologist David Rose told the hearing Bates-Spiers had levels of Xanax in his system at twice the therapeutic dose. He also discovered levels of oxycodone that could be fatal in an inexperienced user, the inquest heard.

Bates-Spiers’s GP, Dr Cecily Fahey, told the hearing he had been addicted to a “variety of medications”.

In July 2015, he told Turning Point, a drug and alcohol help service, that he injected “two bags each of heroin and crack cocaine daily with occasional use of cannabis”, the inquest heard.

The inquest, which is scheduled to last three days, continues.