Far right cult may have been involved in Jeremiah Duggan death, rules UK coroner

A British student who died on a motorway in Germany after attending the conference of a German far right cult did not commit suicide, a British coroner ruled.

The ruling overturned that of a German coroner, who upheld a police decision that Jeremiah Duggan, 22, died after committing "suicide by means of traffic accident" after attending a conference by the far right LaRouche group near Wiesbaden in March, 2003.

But coroner Andrew Walker ruled that the group "may have had a bearing" on Duggan's death.

"The fact that he attended a conference run by this far right-wing organisation… together with Mr Duggan expressing that he was a Jew, British and questioning the material put before him, may have had a bearing on Mr Duggan's death in the sense that it may have put him at risk from members of the organisation and caused him to become distressed and seek to leave," Walker said.

Walker rejected claims that Duggan's body had been moved to the motorway after he was killed, but said there were unexplained injuries on his body that suggested he "may have been involved in an altercation at some stage before his death".

Duggan's family have long been convinced that the student did not take his own life.

In a statement, his family said: "We wish to express our gratitude… that the fact that he revealed that he was Jewish, British, and questioned the anti-British and antisemitic ideology may have been a factor in his death and put him at risk from those in the organisation; and that he became distressed and sought to leave the conference."

They expressed their hope that the verdict would serve as a warning to other young people attracted to cults.

"We hope Jeremiah's legacy will be that the strong message that such extremist organisations exist, which target university students for recruitment, has been heard, so that the dangers they pose can be avoided."

Duggan's mother, Erica, vowed to "fight on".

"I'm going to fight on, but I'm not sure I will do it through the justice system. I would like to think very hard about whether or not the kind of investigations that have gone on in Germany, and also in Britain, have led me to find out how my son really died," she told MailOnline.

"I know he was destroyed by the LaRouche organisation."

Earlier, the court heard how Duggan had travelled from France to join an anti-Iraq war protest held by the group.

He was allegedly shunned at the event for being British and Jewish.

Earlier, French MP and cult expert Catherine Picard said that Duggan may have been placed under significant psychological pressure from the group before his death.

Jeremiah might have been under the influence or control of the organisation LaRouche, which exploited his vulnerability due to geographical isolation in Germany, without members of his family or girlfriend, and played on a potential loss of bearings.

"It should be noted that members of this organisation undergo significant pressure and part of the psychological pressure is being subjected to repeated conspiracy theories and antisemitic discourse."