Banker died 'after telling of fraud case fear'

THE widow of a NatWest fraud trial witness told an inquest yesterday that her husband died within days of telling her he feared being "dragged into" the case.

The body of retired banking executive Neil Coulbeck, 53, was found in parkland near his home in Woodford Green, east London, on 11 July last year.

Mr Coulbeck, a former top executive at the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which owns NatWest, had given evidence to the FBI about the case of the so-called NatWest Three.

David Bermingham, Gary Mulgrew and Giles Darby are accused of advising the bank, their former employer, to sell part of a company owned by collapsed US energy giant Enron for less than it was worth. They then left the bank and bought a stake in the company, which they sold at a significantly higher price to make a huge profit, it is claimed.

The three were extradited to Houston, Texas, last July under a controversial treaty with the United States.

Susan Coulbeck told Walthamstow Coroner's Court that her husband took early retirement at the end of 2003 following a successful career that included several years working in the US.

She described her husband as "grounded in honesty and integrity". But she told Dr Elizabeth Stearns, the coroner, that her husband's mood suddenly changed at the beginning of July last year after he read newspaper reports about the NatWest Three case.

She said Mr Coulbeck had made a statement to the FBI over the case "a few years ago". She added: "I don't think he found it a pleasant experience."

He had been assured at the time that he was not under suspicion, she said.

Mr Coulbeck later confessed to his wife that he felt suicidal.

On 5 July, when he failed to return home, Mrs Coulbeck "knew something had gone wrong".

She reported him missing to police. His body was found near their home on July 11.

Telephone records showed Mr Coulbeck made 14 calls to the US on 30 June and three calls to the head of legal services at RBS on 4 July.

Dr Peter Jerreat, a Home Office pathologist, said Mr Coulbeck was found lying in a thicket with two knives, a water bottle and two small pieces of foil, possibly from a medication blister pack, nearby. He had a large wound to his left wrist. Toxicology tests had found no substances in his body.

Dr Stearns, the coroner, recorded the cause of Mr Coulbeck's death as haemorrhaging from the wound on his left wrist. She added: "He killed himself while the balance of his mind was disturbed."