A DRUNKEN man is likely to have fallen into the River Kennet as he attempted to return to his houseboat, an inquest heard.

John Bentham lived at Aldermaston Wharf and was known to visit The Butt Inn pub on a regular basis.

The 37-year-old is believed to have consumed enough alcohol to be three and a half times over the drink-drive limit, which may have caused him to fall into the water.

Family of Mr Bentham attending the inquest at Reading Town Hall on Friday believe opportunists broke into his boat the day after he died.

His partner Lucy Bentham explained how he enjoyed a drink and was a particularly heavy drinker in the last few months of his life.

He had recently been convicted of drink-driving and was given a community order after losing his licence.

David Thomas, the marina manager, found the body after draining water from the lock on November 27.

He ran back to his office to call for police and they attended along with firefighters so that the body could be retrieved and identified.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Peter Bedford, senior coroner for Berkshire, said he may have found it hard to escape the water due to his 'drunken state'.

He added: "In this case I do not have any evidence how how he came to be in the water. Having been to the pub and had the level of alcohol he had consumed, he walked back to the houseboat but never arrived.

"On the balance of probability it is not impossible that he has struggled in his drunken state and was unable to get out.

"There is no evidence that anyone pushed him and on the evidence I have before me the most likely explanation is an accident."

An examination of his body revealed he had an enlarged heart and some of his coronary arteries were blocked by as much as 85 per cent.

The coroner said this could have caused Mr Bentham to have suffered a sudden heart attack, but there was no evidence to prove this had happened.