An elderly couple discovered deceased by their daughter-in-law at their family home had left a haunting eight-word message pinned to their front door, an inquest has been told.
Tony and Phyllis Gilbert, both 83, had executed their wills merely four days prior to taking their own lives at their residence in Kenmare, County Kerry, in November 2021, Tralee District Court was informed.
Mrs Gilbert had been battling stage four pancreatic cancer and both died after consuming a toxic substance, a post-mortem examination revealed.
The pensioner couple were discovered lifeless by daughter-in-law Beryl Gilbert at their bungalow in Dromneavane in Kenmare, Co Kerry, just after 10am on November 14, 2021.
Providing testimony during the inquest, Beryl detailed how she encountered a message attached to the front door whilst delivering food shopping.
The A4 note stated: “All going to plan we should be dead.”
The Irish Mirror reports that the message’s author requested that the police be contacted. Directions were left explaining that a front door key could be found in a flower pot.
Upon entering at approximately 10.20am, police constables located the bodies of Mr and Mrs Gilbert in separate beds within a bedroom.
Neither body showed any evidence of injury or trauma, Coroner for Kerry Aisling Quilter was informed. The court was informed that police discovered a tape recorder containing two recordings of the couple’s voices.
A note instructed officers to listen to the recordings, with Mr Gilbert stating that he and his wife had been “together in life” and intended to be “together in sleep.”
Their granddaughter, Felicity Gilbert, described the couple as being “as close as you can be companionship wise”. She revealed that they had become “quite reclusive”, distancing themselves from society due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The inquest was told that Mr Gilbert had reached out to solicitor Vincent Coakley in October 2021 via phone to inquire about drafting a will for himself and his wife. It was reported that Mr Gilbert expressed to Mr Coakley their eagerness to create a will due to their good health.
After discussing their wishes over the phone, Mr and Mrs Gilbert visited the solicitor’s office on 10 November and signed their wills. Mr Coakley noted that while Mrs Gilbert was “very infirm”, both she and her husband were mentally competent to draft their own wills, with three witnesses present.
Post-mortem examinations were conducted by Chief State Pathologist Dr Linda Mulligan at University Hospital in Kerry. It was determined that the couple had consumed a poisonous substance which resulted in their deaths.
Toxicology results confirmed that the pair had died after ingesting a poisonous substance.
Mr and Mrs Gilbert, who relocated to Kerry from the UK in the 1990s and formerly operated a thriving glass engraving business on Henry Street in Kenmare, would have passed away swiftly, according to Dr Mulligan’s testimony at the inquest. She noted that Mrs Gilbert was suffering from stage four pancreatic cancer at the time of her death, with the disease having spread throughout her body.
Coroner Quilter ruled their deaths as suicide, stating to the court that it was evident the married couple had made arrangements prior to their passing. She described the case as “a traumatic” one.
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