Bobsleigh soldier inquest opens

The incident happened outside the Antico disco

A British soldier died from massive head injuries after he was punched and kicked to the ground outside an Austrian nightclub, an inquest has been told.

Corporal Derek Osborne, 31, was in Austria competing in a military bobsleigh competition when he died.

An inquest into his death, held in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, was told he was leaving the Antica nightclub in Innsbruck in the early hours of 4 February when the fight broke out.

Post-mortems

North Yorkshire coroner Jeremy Cave said that two separate post-mortems had confirmed massive head injuries as the cause of death.

Cpl Osborne, who was married with a young child and came from Barrow-in-Furness, in Cumbria, served with the Kings Own Royal Border Regiment at Catterick in North Yorkshire.

The inquest was adjourned to a date to be fixed and Cpl Osborne's funeral will be held later this week.

Five people are currently being held by Austrian police in connection with the killing and the investigation is continuing.