Drowned men had taken P, cannabis, court told

Wellington - Methamphetamine and cannabis were found in the blood of a father and son who drowned in Lake Taupo last year.

The father and two sons were in a small aluminium dinghy which sank after midnight last June 3 as they returned from a fishing trip.

One son survived but the father, aged 54, and his 28-year-old son drowned. None of the men were wearing lifejackets.

Autopsies on the men found traces of cannabis and methamphetamine, or P, in their blood and urine, and methamphetamine was found in one man's pocket.

The Dominion Post today reported Taupo coroner Wallace Bain this week suppressed the names of all three men but declined the family's request that the drug evidence be suppressed.

Dr Bain said the drugs were consumed within three to four hours of their death and could have affected their judgement.

Dr Bain also recommended that fishermen use neoprene waders, which kept the surviving son warm and buoyant in the lake.

He said it should be compulsory for all boaties in small craft to wear lifejackets.

- NZPA