A ‘vulnerable’ boarding school pupil who was exploited by county lines criminals after he was bullied for his red hair died after taking drugs and drinking alcohol, an inquest heard.
‘Lively, funny and intelligent’ George Lusby, 22, came from a ‘stable’ home but was targeted by drug dealers after he was tormented over his distinctive look at Wymondham College in Norfolk.
His grooming began when he was tricked into carrying packages which then escalated into demands for money with threats of violence, the hearing was told.
In 2022 he was left with PTSD after a knife was held to his throat and he was later stabbed.
There were periods of estrangement from his family but the inquest heard he came from a loving home and remained close to his supportive parents.
George eventually managed to start turning his life around when he began working in the building trade, joined a gym and passed his driving test.
He had been excited and talking about his future when he went out with friends in August last year and collapsed after taking diazepam and drinking alcohol. His brain was starved of oxygen and died in hospital eight days later.
George’s father, the commercial director of an international building firm, told the hearing he believed his son’s new-found positive outlook meant he partied ‘too hard’ and ‘went too far’.
George Lusby, 22, came from a ‘stable’ home but was targeted by drug dealers after he was tormented over his distinctive ginger hair at Wymondham College in Norfolk
After the coroner recorded a conclusion of misadventure, he and George’s grieving mother, Jane Stasiak warned: ‘Child criminal exploitation can reach any child.’
In a tragic statement read out at Norfolk Coroner’s Court, the couple described their son as ‘lively, funny and intelligent, with a mop of bright orange hair’.
Ms Stasiak explained how George had been proud of his hair at first. Photos on a tribute page show a smiling boy who loved football and played the guitar.
But his demeanour changed when he was bullied at Wymondham College, whose alumni include actor Mark Strong and former Labour minister Stephen Byers, and where annual boarding fees for sixth formers are £17,550.
The teenager was soon identified by county lines drug dealers operating in the county.
His father told the inquest he had been threatened by adults who found troubled children and got them to act as drug runners, adding: ‘George went down roads no parents want their children to go down.’
The schoolboy was diagnosed with depression in 2020 and later with mixed anxiety and depressive disorder.
He also experienced night terrors and used alcohol, cannabis and non-prescribed medications to try and cope.
Photos on a tribute website show a happy boy whose hobbies included playing the guitar
An excited George was also seen enjoying a football match
Sporty George seen with fellow rugby players
Two years later he started suffering from PTSD after he was threatened with the knife and the periods when he was out of contact with his family followed.
George was referred to mental health services on numerous occasions but missed appointments and didn’t always take prescribed drugs.
In September 2024, he began talking about ending his life and an ambulance was called.
But the inquest in Norwich was told that he came from a living family and, throughout all the trauma, he remained closed to his parents and wider family.
Eight months before his death, he had turned a corner and started a regular job in construction and started working out.
‘His employers were delighted with him. He was working hard and making plans,’ Ms Stasiak said.
She added that her son had been in good form a few days before his death, saying: ‘He was excited, talking about the future and moving on.’
Mr Lusby, 54, said: ‘He was enjoying life again. He had optimism. But the scars of what he had been through as a youngster were still there.’
George’s inquest heard that he was proud of his red hair as a child but this changed when he was bullied at school
Larking about in a dog cage.
George went out with friends on August 16 last year and took anti-anxiety medication diazepam mixed with alcohol.
His friends found his unconscious the following afternoon and he was taken to Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital by air ambulance.
He was frothing at the mouth and continued convulsing despite being given anti-epileptic medication.
Doctors moved him to the critical care unit but scans showed he had suffered massive brain injury caused by lack of oxygen during a cardiac arrest.
George’s family agreed to withdraw treatment following a consultation with doctors and he died on August 22. Some of his organs were donated.
Mr Lusby told the inquest that he believed the optimism his son had finally found led to him going ‘too far’ on the night out.
The formal cause of death was given as anoxic brain injury following an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, with aspiration of gastric contents due to alcohol and non-prescribed drugs.
Recording her conclusion, coroner Johanna Thompson referred to the complicated circumstances he had endured, saying: ‘The medical cause of death may give an impression that does not convey the full history.’
A tribute website set up in George’s memory has raised more than £3,000 for the Joe Dix Foundation, which was set up to raise awareness of child criminal exploitation following the fatal stabbing of a teenager in Norwich.
A message on the page, which can be found at https://georgelusby.muchloved.com/, says: ‘This site is a tribute in memory of George, enabling us all to post positive messaged and photos.’
Comments from donors included: ‘A charismatic young man, a good friend and a gentle soul. Rest in peace George.’
Wymondham College, which opened in 1951, is a former grammar school with academy status that is one of 36 state boarding schools in England.
The school was contacted for a comment.