A 28-year-old man found in Merseyside docks went missing from a hospital before he could be assessed by mental health experts, an inquest heard.
Uyapo Hayunga-Macha was found in the waters at Morpeth Wharf, Birkenhead, in March having been missing since December 4, last year.
He had been taken to Arrowe Park Hospital after a worrying episode in which he telephoned his step-dad, telling him he'd heard voices and people were trying to break into his flat.
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Uyapo, also known as Theo, locked his chain on the door before his relatives persuaded him to let them inside, and it was shown there were no potential intruders.
An inquest into Uyapo's death was held earlier this week at Liverpool Coroner's Court in Kirkdale where a cause of death of drowning was given.
A narrative conclusion was issued.
And it was heard how the 28-year-old had arrived at Arrowe Park, but left of his own accord before medics could come and assess his mental health.
There was no financial activity on his accounts and he remained missing until March 9, this year, when his body was found in the waters.
It was added: "It remains unclear as to how he ended up in the water."
Uyapo was born in Gaborone, Botswana, and worked as a forklift driver.
He lived in Birkenhead and also had links to Kent.
Before he was found, his family had spoken publicly about his disappearance, urging him to come home, and police had launched a series of urgent appeals.
Detectives had released new pictures of Theo and his bag in an effort to locate him.
Extensive enquiries and searches had been carried out, but there were no confirmed sightings.
Speaking to the ECHO in a past appeal to find his missing step-son, 67-year-old Robert Wood said: "The last time I saw him was on the Thursday evening, December 3.
"I'd gone to work for the afternoon, but at about 3.55pm I received a call from him.
"He said someone was trying to break into the flat. I was a bit confused thinking why would someone want to break into the flat? He was very anxious and agitated, but I managed to get home and when I got there he had the door locked.
"He had the chain on the door and said he was hearing voices of someone trying to break in. There was nobody there, of course, and everything was fine.
"I rang the ambulance service and they came at about 10pm. I was with Uyapo all that time, but he didn't really want to go with them.
"I said you need to, you need to get the treatment. He went into the ambulance and that was the last time I saw him."
The 28-year-old lived with Robert and his wife and he settled into the area in September 2020, after living down south.
Robert said then: "It's been very quiet [without him]. It's been lonely, it's been strange. The atmosphere in the flat has changed."
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