On January 23, 2020, the body of 33-year-old soldier Lance Corporal Bernard Mongan was discovered in his barracks chamber in Catterick, North Yorkshire. According to the inquiry, Mongan had informed his superiors that he was suicidal around Christmas in 2019 and that they were meant to check on him at that time.
The inquest’s assigned independent counsel, Craig Hassall KC, informed the panel that he was last seen alive on January 2, 2020, but his body was not discovered until January 23, 2020.
According to Barrister Jesse Nicholls, who was representing Bethany, Mongan’s widow, it took an intolerable and cruel length of time before Mongan was located.
In addition, the family voiced their displeasure that the Army’s official inquiry had never adequately examined the accusations of bullying, which they felt warranted further study.
The widow has expressed worry that the facts of her husband’s bullying victimization would remain hidden if the accused were not brought in as witnesses.
Those in charge of Mongan’s care were abusing and tormenting him, knowing he was fragile, according to several witnesses. Worried about Mongan’s state of mind, they put him on a welfare monitoring regime.
The Army presided over two unsuccessful internal investigations into crucial topics that the inquest will now decide.
In an effort to minimize the gravity of the situation, the Ministry of Defense allegedly made submissions based on factually selective and cherry-picked evidence.
Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights mandates that states must ensure the safety of their citizens, and this case fell under that obligation.
According to Coroner Jonathan Leach’s ruling, he will not be obligated to follow Article Two and will have an open mind on its applicability.
The circumstances behind the death of Lance Corporal Mongan will be thoroughly and courageously investigated. A ruling on the breadth of the inquest will be made within the next week, with the ruling on the Article 2 inquest coming in two weeks.