HEAD injuries suffered by attack victim Shahbaz Arshad were so severe it was most unlikely he would have ever regained consciousness or made any sort of recovery, an inquest was told.

Mr Arshad, 21, of Woodside Terrace, Brierfield, died in the Royal Preston Hospital on March 8, 16 days after an incident in a back street off Halifax Road.

At the inquest in Burnley yesterday, Vazir Hussain of King Street, Brierfield, said his brother-in-law was an unemployed factory worker. He was a married man with a young child.

He was fit and active with no medical problems. He last saw him alive and well two days before the incident.

Home Office pathologist Dr William Lawler said Mr Arshad had suffered a severe head injury.

Despite all the hospital treatment, he had developed a variety of complications including haemorrhage and swelling of the brain.

They were significant factors in encouraging pneumonia which was inevitable in those circumstances.

Dr Lawler said cause of death was bronchial pneumonia following a severe head injury.

He told the family that had he lived the extent of the injury was such that he would never have recovered consciousness or made any sort of recovery. Detective Inspector Charles Lemmon said three men had been charged with Mr Arshad's murder and asked for the inquest to be adjourned.

Adjourning the inquest sine die, East Lancashire coroner David Smith told the family that a second post mortem examination had been carried out on behalf of the people who had been charged.

It was hoped the body could soon be released for burial and he expressed thanks to the community for understanding the problems involved.

The family told him they were happy with the way the police had conducted the inquiry and that they wanted to thank the police, the people of the local community and witnesses who had come forward.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.