The BC Coroners Service has announced it will hold an inquest into the death of a Coquitlam man who died this past spring while at a substance abuse treatment centre in Powell River.
Brandon Juhani Jansen, who grew up in Port Coquitlam and Coquitlam, died March 7 of this year and the inquest will be an opportunity to explore issues arriving from overdose deaths, according to a statement from the coroner service.
The inquest will be held beginning Jan. 16 at 9:30 a.m. in the Burnaby Coroners Court.
"It is hoped for a well-informed jury to make practical and useful recommendations to help prevent similar deaths in the future," Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe said in a press release.
At the same time, Lapointe also announced that a special drug investigation team will be established to look into accidental illicit drug deaths in the province.
The team will conduct investigations and identify trends and patterns that can be used to come up with prevention strategies. It will be funded from a $10-million pot announced last month to combat the growing number of illicit drug deaths.
