A CWMBRAN man with mental health problems killed himself by jumping off Newport Bridge, the Gwent coroner heard yesterday.

Damien Allen, who was 24, went missing from Talygarn Hospital on July 4, 2001.

The court

Witness Christopher Hooper, who was driving to work with a colleague, said: "I saw a man standing on the other side of the bridge and I was concerned for him because where he was stood was a sheer drop into the river.

"We drove further on, I asked my colleague if he was still there and she said, 'Oh my God, he's jumped'.

"When I looked over the railings I could see him struggling to stay afloat but he wasn't shouting for any help.

"I saw his head above the water and then that was the last I saw of him."

Mr Hooper positively identified to police a picture of Mr Allen as the man he saw jump into the Usk.

A few days later, on the afternoon of July 7, 2001, a body believed to have been Mr Allen's washed up next to the Transporter Bridge, but fire service boats failed to recover it.

In March 23 last year, a fisherman walking near the village of Sudbrook found a trainer which contained a sock and human remains.

Police carried out a further search and discovered a second trainer also containing human remains but could not find any of the rest of the body. DNA testing identified the remains as those of Mr Allen.

Gwent Coroner David Bowen said: "From the evidence I have heard I am satisfied that the body parts were of Damien Allen and that he is no longer alive.

"He had always threatened to end his life with reference to water and he jumped off the bridge with the intention of ending his own life.

"The proper verdict in this case is that he killed himself while suffering from a psychiatric disorder.

"If he was determined to end his life he could find a way to do so."