A WELL-KNOWN Newton Abbot street character died from drugs toxicity, an opening inquest has been told.

Mark Dagger, who slept rough locally, was found dead outside the town’s Avenue Church on January 22.

He was discovered in his sleeping bag in the church’s car park.

The hearing in Torquay last Friday was told that Mark, 44, was a ‘vulnerable adult with severe mental health problems.’

He had been sleeping on the streets for some 20 years.

Coroner’s Officer Ric Parsons said Nottingham-born Mark, single and unemployed, had a history of alcohol and drugs abuse.

There were no suspicious circumstances.

He was formally identified by his father Gordon Dagger, a retired retail shop manager from Kingskerswell.

A full inquest will be heard at a later date.