Matt Bone: Death of man missing for two years 'unexplained'

Mr Bone's family appealed for sightings of him

The death of a man whose body was found more than two years after he disappeared cannot be explained, a coroner has said.

Matt Bone, 26, left his home in Widley, Hampshire, in March 2018.

The PhD student was seen five days later in Callow End, Worcestershire, before his body was found in a nearby field in June 2020.

Recording an open conclusion, senior Worcestershire coroner David Reid said the cause of death was unascertained.

The PhD student disappeared in 2018 while visiting the Malvern Hills

Mr Bone's family previously said he left home on 4 March carrying a small rucksack and without a coat.

Two days later he presented himself at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth and was treated for dehydration, police said.

He disappeared again before checking into Stanbrook Abbey Hotel in Callow End on 9 March.

Mr Reid said: "Mr Bone, who was struggling with his mental health... was last sighted alive at an address nearby that evening."

The skeletal remains were found on 12 June this year in a field near Newland, 2.5 miles (4km) away, the coroner said.

Previously, Mr Bone's family thanked people who had responded to requests for information about him via national media appeals.

West Mercia Police said it was not treating the death as suspicious.