Dog refuses to leave riverbank after owner drowns, found 'barking at river'

A loyal dog refused to leave the riverbank where he last saw his owner, Nicholas Degraff. The 23-year-old man was reported missing after his dog, Leah, was found at the side of the River Derwent at Great Clifton on December 12 last year.

The dog kept "barking at the river" and refused to leave the scene, per local media reports.

An inquest at Cockermouth Coroner's Court heard that he was last captured on CCTV walking his dog through Great Clifton in the early hours on December 12. His Snapchat had managed to capture his last location, which was at the riverbank. His bank cards and mobile phone were also not used after that day.

A massive search operation was launched to look for Degraff. Five weeks after his disappearance, his body was discovered by a dredger vessel in the sea off the Cumbrian coast. The dog lead was also found in the river.

"The lower half of a body wearing black jogging bottoms and black work boots had been found [in the hopper]," said detective Inspector Hayley Wilkinson.

A pathologist concluded that Degraff died from immersion. The toxicology report found traces of alcohol and cocaine in his system.

Coroner Kirsty Gomersal said Degraff's death was "a mystery" and that "there's only Leah that can really tell us that - if only dogs could talk."

"That is the greatest mystery of all - how did Nic come to be in the river is a mystery and that is something only Leah would be able to tell us," the coroner added.

His mother, Hillary, described her son as a "cheeky and happy little boy" when he was a child. "All his life he wanted a German Shepherd dog and in 2018 he brought Leah home who became his best friend and they both went everywhere together," she added while speaking about the bond Degraff shared with Leah.