A man from Watford, who was found dead following a heroin relapse, was suffering from anxiety and depression after a court case investigating the mutilation of his hand was delayed.

Michael Yule, a 33-year-old from Queens Road, was found underneath a railway bridge in Water lane on April 16 last year.

A paramedic reported he found Mr Yule in the foetal position clutching the nearby railing. He had about 40mg of alcohol - half the legal driving limit - and heroin in his blood, as well as the early stages of emphysema.

Despite a history of heroin addiction, Mr Yule had been tested 19 times in the six weeks before his death and had been clean each time.

DS John Hazeldene, who investigated the death, said he was first alerted by a member of the public who was working at a nearby goods yard.

He said: “Mr Yule was on a relatively inaccessible piece of land, you have to walk along the canal path and go up the rear gardens of the houses to get to the clearing where he was sitting.

“He was sitting on an upturned milk crate, with a red plastic lighter in his right hand, and his left was pressed up to his cheek, holding a Nokia mobile phone.

“By his feet were a trilby hat and a wallet. He also had several Coral betting slips, which he had written on saying he felt low and wanted life to be back to normal.”

An inquest into his death was then opened, but had to be adjourned in order to not prejudice an open court case investigating an assault in 2008, where Mr Yule's finger was injured.

The little finger of his left hand was burned to the extent it had to be amputated at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.

A man was charged in connection with the assault, but denied involvement, saying it was an accident.

Detective constable Ben Freeman, who investigated the assault, spoke at an inquest into Mr Yule's death yesterday.

He said “Our first meeting was when he told me what had happened to him. I was only the third person he had told, the first person he didn't know, and he was very fearful.

“He had told his friends he'd fallen off a bicycle but none of them believed him. He was so terrified he couldn't tell anyone.

“He was very stressed about the upcoming trial but was very positive and realised he had to go through it for closure and to help anyone else in similar circumstances.”

The original trial date of January 2010 had to be put back, after the doctor who initially treated Mr Yule submitted a vital piece of evidence after a set deadline.

DC Freeman said: “The doctor had something of a celebrity status, resulting in him being taken abroad for work, and a statement from him was served late and after the given date, delaying the trial.”

The defendant, who had been remanded in custody before the first trial date, was then released on strict bail conditions, preventing him from entering Hertfordshire.

DC Freeman added: “There was a deterioration in Michael from the date of his delayed trial to his death, he wouldn't answer the phone and would turn up at the station clearly under the influence of something, of what I couldn't tell.”

Following his death in April, the trial went on without Mr Yule.

An ex-army doctor countered the evidence of Mr Yule's doctor by suggesting the injury could have been caused by placing the finger on a hot surface, and the defendant was found not guilty.

After the trial coroner Edward Thomas reopened the inquest and recorded a verdict of accidental death.

He added: “If the trial had been dealt with in January that would have been a terrific weight off his mind.

“Alcohol and heroin provided relief from the anxiety and pressures but were not a permanent release, and had the effect of depressing the respiratory system.

“Unfortunately this time it had a fatal effect. It is very sad that he strived so hard to come off something which is very hard to come off.

“He is clearly missed by a lot of people. Members of the police force knew him for the decent person he was.”

Mr Yule, a delivery driver, is originally from Chesterfield, having moved in 1984. He was a West Ham supporter, and his father said he was “football mad”.

Mr Yule, Michael's father, who lives in Somerset, said: “The last time we saw him was before we found out what had happened to his finger.

“He was full of the joys of spring and was pleased to see up. We had no idea about the drugs and he never said he wanted to kill himself.”