Fall death ruled accidental - despite wife's quip

Bruce Mouat died after falling down some steps at his home. Photo / Thinkstock

The wife of a Taranaki mountaineer who died after falling down their steps turned suspicion on herself by asking his sister how it felt to hug a murderer, a coroner's inquiry has revealed.

Bruce Mouat, 48, died in Wellington Hospital last July 27 after falling down steps at the couple's Hawera home 11 days earlier.

Yesterday, coroner Tim Scott released his findings into Mr Mouat's death, saying it was the result of blunt-force head injury from an incident at his home.

Police investigated Mr Mouat's death at the time "on the basis that it may have been a homicide", Mr Scott said.

Contributing to that was a comment made by Susan Mouat.

"Susan's sister-in-law told the police that at the funeral, Susan approached her and embraced her in a hug and then said, 'How does it feel to hug a murderer?"' Mr Scott's report said.

Mrs Mouat told the coroner that she could not remember saying that, and if she had, it would have been black humour and not to be taken literally.

Mr Scott said: "I cannot begin to imagine why Susan would make such an uncalled-for comment at the funeral.

"Had she been involved in Bruce's death then it was a crazy piece of self-incrimination.

"Had she not been involved as a third party in Bruce's death, then it was also a crazy piece of self-incrimination. Either way, it made no sense at all."

Mr Scott's finding outlined events leading up to Mr Mouat's death. The Fonterra dairy factory machine operator attended a work function on Friday, July 15, at which he drank heavily.

He got into an argument late on the Friday night and was taken home by two women early on the Saturday morning.

Mrs Mouat, who had not gone to the function because she was home with a sick child, woke about 1.15am and heard her husband arriving home. "She stayed in bed deciding what to do, knowing that Bruce was probably drunk," Mr Scott said.

She went downstairs to let him in and found him "paralytic". She got worked up and "started going nuts" at him.

When he said he wanted to go out again, she took his car keys and made it clear he should leave. She went back upstairs, while he went outside again.

"After a thorough investigation, the police concluded that there was no evidence that Susan was actively involved in Bruce's death and that the only evidence available to them supported her account that, in a drunken state, he had fallen from the steps, striking his head hard on the concrete paver at ground level. I agree."