Son of ex-Chelsea player died in 40C desert hike

The son of ex-Chelsea midfielder Eddie Newton ignored pleas from his wife to not go on what turned out to be a fatal 40C (104F) desert hike, a coroner said.

Rescue teams found the body of Cassius Newton, 34, in the mountainous region of Wadi Naqab, United Arab Emirates (UAE), on 18 July - hours after the couple last spoke, an inquest was told.

His friend, Aran Martinson, from Bishop's Stortford in Hertfordshire, also died in the sweltering heat after they set off at about 07:00 local time (04:00 BST).

Area coroner Michelle Brown ruled their deaths were the result of misadventure and said: "This was an intentional trip with unintended consequences."

Newton met Martinson through their work at a "global company" and they both lived in the luxury resort of Ras Al Khaimah, to the north-east of Dubai.

He called his wife at about 02:00 to inform her of their planned hike and "she asked him not to go", Essex Coroner's Court heard.

"She knew it would be very hot and it can get to about 40C, and the feeling is higher because it's in the canyons," Brown said.

"He was also out the night before and wouldn't have had much sleep, and she didn't think he would have charged his phone enough."

Rescue efforts were launched after the wives of both men called the authorities, having not heard from them for hours.

They were discovered between 3km and 4km (1.8 miles and 2.5 miles) from where they had parked, and their bodies were 350m (1,148ft) apart.

Brown described the circular route they were walking as "a recreational hike".

It was on a designated trail that did not require any equipment and should have taken about four hours to complete.

Newton, originally from Poole, and father-of-three Martinson were both lying on their backs surrounded by large rocks.

They were taken to hospital in Ras Al Khaimah but pronounced dead later that day.

She said Eddie Newton flew out to the UAE to identify his son's body.

Text messages between Martinson and his wife were also read to the court, in which she said at 09:26: "You must be cooking."

Having not heard from him five hours later, she messaged: "[You are] actually trying to tip me over the edge I swear."

Brown said the men both died from severe rising body temperatures which led to organ failure.

A previous hearing was told it was 50C (122F) in the desert, but Brown said it was 40C earlier.

In an earlier tribute, Chelsea said it was "devastated" to learn of the death of Newton, who once played for the club's academy.

Martinson's wife wrote online that her husband was "incredibly driven, hardworking and ambitious".

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