'He was a great lad': Tragedy of popular accountant and footballer found dead in woodland

A much-loved and popular accountant and footballer was found dead in woodland in Stockport after a 'sudden' downturn in his mental health, an inquest has heard.

Charlie Johnson, 26, vanished from the family home in Cheadle Hulme with his family reporting him missing on September 22 last year. It sparked a huge, high-proifle search which involved a large number of police officers and specialist resources, as well as family, friends and locals.

His body was tragically discovered in a secluded area off Lugano Road in Bramhall four days later by parents. An inquest into his death was held at South Manchester Coroner's Court in Stockport today (Monday) where a coroner ruled he intended to take his own life.

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His father Ian Johnson told the hearing that up until a few months before his son's death, Charlie had 'had a really good life' including a 'fantastic childhood', a large proportion of which was spent living in Shanghai in China, and was 'very popular.'

When back in the UK, the hearing was told he worked 'extremely hard' whilst training as a chartered accountant, and had found out at the start of 2023 that he had passed his final exams at the first attempt. He was also intending to buy his own flat.

Mr Johnson said his son was very 'adventurous' and had become a qualified skydiver, jumping from a plane on 60 to 70 seperate occasion. He was also a keen snowboarder and pianist as well as footballer.

However, he said that in late August of last year, it became clear that 'something wasn't right.' He said the change in his mood and demeanour was 'sudden' and 'seemed to come out of nowhere..' "We will never know how it got to the point of having