AN alcoholic was crushed to death after he fell asleep inside a skip and was emptied into a refuse wagon, an inquest heard yesterday.

The body of father-of-four David Griffiths, 39, was later discovered among rubbish at a tip.

A post-mortem examination by pathologist Dr James Sunter revealed that he had suffered extensive crush injuries that would have resulted in almost immediate death.

Crane operator Andrew Hey discovered the body at the Teesside Waste Management recycling centre, in Dockside Road, Middlesbrough.

He told an inquest in Middlesbrough: "I grabbed a mound of rubbish and saw what appeared to be a dummy hanging out."

Seconds later he realised it was a body and raised the alarm.

The hearing was told that Mr Griffiths had been drinking in pubs in Middlesbrough's Zetland Road the day before.

Because of his excessive drinking, the unemployed labourer and ex-bouncer, of Kinver Close, Middlesbrough, regularly slept rough.

In a statement read out during the inquest, one of his long-time drinking partners, Jimmy Leadbitter, said: "When he is drinking he falls asleep and can't be woken -it's as if he is in a coma."

Teesside Coroner Michael Sheffield recorded an open verdict. He said: "It has been impossible to establish a likely story of what occurred in the evening that ended in Mr Griffiths' death.

"The evidence shows that almost certainly that shortly after 3am on Friday morning, no doubt affected by alcohol by some means, he was in a skip in the town centre.

"It is likely that having got into the skip he fell into a deep slumber and was lifted into the refuse wagon."

Laying no blame whatsoever on refuse collectors, he concluded: "Death would be immediate.

"The state Mr Griffiths was in it is likely he would know little or nothing of what happened to him."