Igor Tambre (35) started drinking heavily, stopped looking after himself and got into debt after his girlfriend left him to go to live in Latvia, the hearing on Friday was told.

He was found dead in his flat in London Road, Lynn, by neighbour Ilva Medneva on December 18 last year. A post mortem showed he died from acute alcohol intoxication.

Recording a verdict of misadventure at Lynn County Court, Greater Norfolk Coroner Mr William Armstrong said: "Whenever he was seen he was very drunk. He was neglecting himself very seriously. He was often seen with injuries.

"He was also in financial difficulties and it is no exaggeration to say that his life was a complete mess. In plain terms he drank himself to death."

Mrs Medneva told the hearing that Mr Tambre, an acquaintance of her husband, was drinking every weekend since his girlfriend left last October.

"He was upset about this," said Mrs Medneva, speaking through a Russian interpreter. "It was this time when he started to drink too much. After that, whenever I saw him, he was very drunk. He became very dirty and smelly. He stopped looking after himself."

Around the beginning of December Mrs Medneva started noticing injuries on Mr Tambre's face. "He looked as if he had been beaten up but he told me he had fallen over," she said.

He also started saying he needed money and was planning to sell his car because of his debts, she added.

She discovered his body on December 18 after going to see if he was OK. The light in his flat had been on for two days and she hadn't seen him. The ambulance was called but he was pronounced dead at the scene.