THE full circumstances surrounding two men’s deaths in York’s rivers in 2019 should finally be revealed later this month when inquests are held.

Consecutive hearings will take place on March 30 at The Old Courtroom, Northallerton, into the unrelated deaths of Joe Rainham in the River Ouse and of Sonny Ferry in the River Foss.

Chef Joe Rainham, 33, of Wilton Rise, Holgate Road, was found dead in the Ouse near Lendal Bridge on October 26.

His family spoke out last year after The Press revealed that Coroner Jon Heath had not yet decided whether to hold an inquest, saying he was awaiting a definitive cause of death to confirm whether one would be required.

Joe’s family said they feared he might have been murdered and an inquest was vital to establish the full facts.

They said police believed his death was due to natural causes and there were no suspicious circumstances, but they were convinced his body was dumped in the river after he had died elsewhere, following foul play. They thought robbery, sexual jealousy and drugs were all possible factors in his death.

They said the family had been told that tests had shown he had died of a cardio-pulmonary arrest but had also shown he had not drowned or ingested any water and he must have suffered the arrest previously.

A friend and housemate said that just a few days before he had disappeared on Friday, October 4, Joe had won £10,000 on online roulette, and he believed he might have been robbed by someone who found out about his winnings.

He said Joe also had a complicated private life, and he wondered if sexual jealousy might have provided another motive.

Joe’s aunt Media said another possibility was that Joe had been given drugs – or his drink had been spiked – and this had caused the heart attack, and someone with him had panicked and dumped his body in the river to avoid questions.

Sonny Ferry, 19, of Rutland, died in the Foss at the end of a night out on April 14, 2019.

Police officers were cleared last year of misconduct over their handling of an investigation into his death, although North Yorkshire Police said lessons had been identified following a complaint by Sonny’s parents Kate and Stephen.

The couple claimed officers’ inquiries were compromised by being effectively closed the day after his death.

They said police were aware Sonny’s wallet was missing when his body was found but it was only in June 2019 that they were advised by police to check his debit card usage and discovered it had been used fraudulently at the time of his death - by when it was too late for CCTV evidence to be collected.

They also said they were only informed three and a half months after Sonny died that two people had been seen on Blue Bridge, close to where he drowned, only moments after he went in the water.

Meanwhile, a pre-inquest review hearing will also take place this Wednesday relating to a third York river death in 2019 - that of Steven O’Neill, 28, of The Wirral, who died in the Ouse on April 20 during a night out.