Content Warning: This story involves suicide, drug use, psychosis, and more.
If you find it difficult to learn about these topics, please consider reading further or seeking support first. If reading this story has disturbed or triggered you, please ensure you find support by contacting family or friends, a psychologist or a mental health phone and web chat service such as Lifeline (13 11 14). .
Luke Huggard's family searched for answers for seven years after the Sydney man disappeared in 2017.
An inquest conducted this month by the State Coroner's Court released its findings, which confirmed Huggard's death and highlighted deficiencies in the medical care he received shortly before his disappearance.
Three days before his death, and seven years to the day, Huggard was arrested as he attempted to take his own life at The Gap in Sydney's east – a location so notorious for suicide attempts that motion cameras were installed there to detect them to reduce number.
Following Huggard's arrest, he was taken into custody and taken to the Prince of Wales Hospital in Randwick and admitted to the Kiloh Center for psychiatric assessment.
Medical records submitted to the inquest said Luke suffered from delusions, paranoia and other symptoms and had amphetamines in his system. Doctors discovered over the next few days that Luke had experienced a drug-induced psychotic episode and although he was “superficially calm”, he was still isolated, confused, disheveled and still having paranoid and disordered thoughts.
Despite all this, Luke was discharged without an established mental health plan or significant support – just a referral. His family was not informed of his release or his whereabouts.
He was discharged on April 4 and medical staff at the Prince of Wales Hospital were the last people to see Luke alive.
Despite multiple searches, Luke's body was never recovered – which is why he remained on the Australian Federal Police's missing persons list for almost seven years.
At the inquest, Magistrate Joan Baptie ruled that Huggard took his own life on April 4, 2017.
Luke Huggard: “Too big for this life”
The inquest detailed Huggard's life, including his lived experiences with mental health issues and drug use, as well as his sometimes strained relationship with his father, both over money and his sexuality as a gay man.
Jessica Huggard spoke of her brother as a “handsome gay man” who was “too big for this life.”
“He grew up in a world that didn’t accept him,” she said.
During the inquest, Magistrate Baptie described Huggard as a person who “stood up for the marginalized”.
“He wanted every single person he met to feel heard, welcome and loved,” she said.
Luke “deserves so much more than he gets”
Huggard's sister has been fighting for justice for her brother for seven years.
Jessica said 7NEWS that Luke had been clean for about 18 months after rehab treatment but was still taking prescription medication – and believes he may have been going through withdrawal psychosis when he died.
“Two weeks before his death he had a job, he had bought animals again, he had his own apartment. It worked, it was clean and happy,” she said.
She says that during the hearing she was relieved to finally get answers, but that quickly turned to anger when she heard about the detailed deficiencies in the medical care Luke received.
“It was a complete disregard for human life. They're basically saying my brother's life doesn't matter,” she said. “They just released him onto the streets with no treatment plan and no contact with family.”
“Sometimes people forget that they are talking about a human being… they get so stuck on the words on the paper.”
Jessica said she will continue to fight for her brother's honor.
“He deserved so much more than he got” She said. “I’m exhausted, but I won’t stop.”
You can Read the full details of the NSW Coroner's Court inquest into Luke Huggard's disappearance here.
If reading this story has disturbed or triggered you, please ensure you find support by contacting family or friends, a psychologist or a mental health phone and web chat service such as Lifeline (13 11 14). .
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