The teenage son of a former Tory MP has died from a suspected drugs overdose in India.
Adam Coombs was found dead in Manali, a remote Himalayan hill town on the hippy trail and notorious for its parties and drugs scene. Indian police said the 19-year-old had 'consumed a heavy dose of opium'.
He was found dead in his bed by his travelling companion Ross Taylor, also 19. They had been pupils together at £27,000-a-year Bryanston school in Dorset.
Drug death: Adam's father, Derek Coombs (right), was a Tory MP and successful businessman
In a statement, Ross told police: 'Me and Adam went for a late-night stroll in the valley where we took opium.
'Although I took a little bit, Adam smoked heavily. Later in the night we went back toward the guest house and went to sleep immediately.
'At around 3pm the next day I woke up and found Adam sleeping. I tried to wake him up and found that his body was cold.'
Indian investigators said Ross took his friend to the town's mission hospital where doctors declared him dead.
The two teenagers had left Bryanston last year. It is one of the country's leading private schools and former pupils include Sir Terence Conran, Lucian Freud and Ben Fogle.
Adam's parents – Derek, 78, and his second wife Jennifer, 56 – are said to be distraught. A successful businessman, Mr Coombs was MP for Birmingham Yardley in the 1970s.
Hippy trail: Adam was staying at the Orchard guest house when he died on May 28
He helped launch Prospect magazine in 1995, pumping £350,000 into the venture, and once tried to buy the New Statesman. In the 2004 Sunday Times Rich List, his fortune was put at £52million.
The family home is a spectacular 17th century manor house near Bryanston.
Adam had met up with Ross, a talented cricket and rugby player, in Manali on their gap year travels.
The pair were staying at the Orchard guest house there when Adam died on May 28.
K.K. Indori, the district police chief, said: 'We didn't find any injury marks on his body.
'He died due to an overdose of opium.'
A post-mortem examination has been carried out but the Indian inquest proceedings may take several months.
Adam's body was flown back to the UK earlier this month.
Mr and Mrs Coombs and Adam's 22-year-old brother Jack released a statement last night, saying: 'Adam had just finished several weeks teaching in a local school and was due to travel south to Delhi to join friends.
'He was staying in a hostel in Manali on May 27, and was found dead in the morning. He effectively went to sleep and never woke up.
'He will be dreadfully missed by his family and friends.'
David Goodhart, a friend speaking on behalf of the family, said last night that various medicines Adam had obtained from an Indian hospital may have led to his death.
Asked about reports that Adam took opium, Mr Goodhart said: 'The family have heard that rumour. As far as they are concerned that's all it is – a rumour.
'Adam was a very, very popular lad. He was going to go to Manchester University to study philosophy. The whole thing is a terrible tragedy.'
Another family friend said: 'Jennifer has been completely broken by this.'
A spokesman for Bryanston School said: 'Staff and students were very saddened to hear news of the untimely death of Adam Coombs, a former student of the school.
'Although he left the school last summer to spend a gap year in India before going to university, Adam is fondly remembered as a popular and talented student who had a very promising future.
'It is a tragedy he should lose his life at such a young age and, naturally, our thoughts and prayers are with all members of his family and his friends.'
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