A man who was caught in the Costa del Sol in Spain after 30 years on the run from police died on the toilet in his prison cell eight days after he arrived, an inquest heard.

Colin Brown was 85 when he died in Wandsworth prison on May 18, 2014.

He had been arrested as an alleged member of a paedophile sex ring which targeted choir boys aged 6 to 14 years old across London in the 70s and 80s and at one point had been believed to have been dead.

He had arrived in Wandsworth prison on May 10.

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An inquest on December 2 at Westminster Coroners' Court heard that Mr Brown was found slumped on the toilet around 5pm after his cell mate became concerned and pushed the door open.

Cellmate Jan Wrocenski said: "I had stayed with him for eight days.

"We did not really know each other as I do not speak English and he does not speak Polish.

"On the 18th, we had breakfast and lunch and I went to church.

"When I was leaving, I said 'Colin good?' And he said 'si, si'.

"After church I went to the cell but did not see Colin and went to visit a friend.

"When I came back, I noticed a smell from the toilet like someone was defecating."

Mr Wrocenski made tea for the pair and called out twice to Mr Brown before becoming concerned that there was no reply.

He said: "I opened the door and I could see him on the toilet.

"He looked like he was defecating.

"I pushed the buzzer for help and helped them get him out of the toilet and the nurse started CPR."

Mr Brown was described as stiff, with fixed pupils.

He was pronounced dead shortly after the paramedics arrived, around 5.21pm.

According to Mr Wrocenski, he had called twice in the middle of the night in the two nights before Mr Brown's death, for help for his shortness of breath but cell call logs showed that there was one call at 11pm and a follow up at 7am.

According to the nursing team, Mr Brown had been treated for constipation and had never shown or mentioned breathing problems.

On arrival at the prison, Mr Brown was seen by nurse Martha Kerry who described him as jolly and polite and said he showed no symptoms of breathlessness.

Mr Brown should have attended a second medical exam on his first full day in the prison, but did not.

He also missed his rearranged appointment. It is not clear why he did not attend, though healthcare can be refused by prisoners.

A postmortem examination revealed he had COPD, and emphysema as well as acute infective exacerbation.

Dr Ahmed Salim conducted a review into the incident and confirmed that there was nothing else the team could have done to prevent Mr Brown's death.

He said: "if he had a detailed assessment it might have come up and there could have been possible further investigation but nothing much would have been done in that week."

Dr Fiona Wilcox, senior coroner at Westminster coroners court said: "He presented on the first night as a jolly and fit man.

"Considering all the interactions with healthcare staff, he did not present as a man with a severe chest condition.

"He sat on the toilet, developed an acute exacerbation and cardiac arrhythmia that led to his death."

Dr Wilcox said nothing else could have been done by medical staff at the prison to prevent his death.