Welsh student died after accidentally hitting head falling into pool

History student from Wales died after accidentally hitting his head falling into a hotel swimming pool in Mexico

• History student Charlie Hopkins, 23, fractured skull when he fell in Mexico pool
• Mystery how he fell into the water as no-one else was by the pool with him at 1am

A young British holidaymaker was killed when he plunged into a hotel swimming-pool in Mexico, an inquest heard yesterday.

History student Charlie Hopkins, 23, from Buckley, north Wales, died after he fractured his skull when he fell into the pool wearing just his underpants.

The inquest heard it was a mystery how the University College London (UCL) student fell into the water because no-one else was in the pool in the 1am tragedy.

CCTV footage showed Charlie walking on a balcony through the hotel’s reception area in his underpants on April 9, 2021.

The hearing was told no-one else was in the pool in Tulum, Mexico, but ‘very soon afterwards’ a camera captured the water in the pool being disturbed.

History student Charlie Hopkins, 23, died after he fractured his skull when he fell into the pool wearing just his underpants

The inquest heard it was a mystery how he fell into the water because no-one else was in the pool in the 1am tragedy

Another guest discovered his body on the bottom of the pool about five hours later.

Charlie had studied history at UCL but did not complete the course.

In a statement read at the inquest his father Mark described him as ‘bubbly’ and ‘the light and soul of every room he was in’. 

He was a keen musician and strong campaigner for LGBT rights.

Mr Hopkins said Charlie had good friends in London where he lived – but was glad to jet off on holiday when the lockdown restrictions during the Covid pandemic were eased.

He checked into the two-storey Hotel Turquoise Petit in Tulum on April 8, 2021, having gone there at the invitation of his friend Alex, who lived in Mexico.

He videocalled his parents almost every day while he was there, the inquest in Ruthin heard.

Mr Hopkins said: ‘We became concerned when we didn’t hear from him for 24 hours.’

On April 9, they received the ‘devastating’ call that he had been found dead.

The hearing was told no-one else was in the pool in Tulum, Mexico, but ‘very soon afterwards’ a camera captured the water in the pool being disturbed

In a statement read at the inquest his father Mark described him as ‘bubbly’ and ‘the light and soul of every room he was in’. He was a keen musician and strong campaigner for LGBT rights

His father added: ‘He was a lively, loving, trusting young man. He saw only the good in everyone.

‘Charlie would always finish talking to someone and say ‘I love that person’ – that’s just the sort of person he was.’

Mr Hopkins’ family said his death has left them ‘broken’ and that their lives have been ‘turned upside down.’

A post-mortem examination was carried out in Mexico. His body was later repatriated.

Home Office pathologist Dr Brian Rodgers confirmed the cause of death as ‘a blunt force head injury and drowning, consistent with a fall from height’.

John Gittins, senior coroner for North Wales East and Central, said initially there were some initial concerns that he had been assaulted.

But the coroner said he had probably hit his head somehow while entering the pool, adding: ‘There is absolutely no reason to give consideration to it being a deliberate act.’

He recorded a conclusion of accidental death.

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