Chef took magic mushrooms before launching himself into the Thames, inquest hears

A young chef who was high on magic mushrooms shouted “I can’t go on anymore” before launching himself into the River Thames in front of his friends, an inquest has heard.

Joe Emanuel Cuaspa Vargas, 21, was seen struggling to stay afloat by passers-by after he jumped into the river near to the London Peace Pagoda in Battersea Park in June 2025.

Marine units with thermal imaging cameras were scrambled to the area but could not locate him, and his body eventually surfaced four days later close to the Grosvenor Bridge in central London.

Inner West London Coroners’ Court heard how Mr Vargas had been with a group of around 20 people on June 2, with friends saying he had taken a “substantial amount” of psychoactive mushrooms.

Yasmin Anderson, a witness who had been running on the Thames-side pathway, said that she saw Mr Vargas struggling in the river.

Battersea Park's Peace Pagoda, close to where Joe Vargas entered the River Thames

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She said: “At first I thought that he was swimming, but it quickly became clear he was not. I saw him on his back and then saw his head roll back and thought it looked like he was swallowing water.

“I then saw that it appeared he was trying to get onto his back again, and it appeared that he was flailing. He wasn't speaking in English and so I could not understand what he was saying.

“The last thing I saw was his hat floating. I could not see anyone related to the male who was with him. I saw approximately 20 people looking at the male in the river, and all of us were frozen and in shock.”

Det Con Sam Chell told the court: “The male was believed to have been with some friends and had jumped on his own into the River Thames. He was seen to have done so by members of the public.

“They had been taking magic mushrooms as a group but there was no indication that anyone had been forced to take any kind of drug. A quantity was taken by all parties, including Joe.

“This was done just prior to him jumping into the Thames.”

Det Con Chell added that he was heard to shout words to the effect of “I can’t go on anymore” before jumping.

Friends of Mr Vargas said he had taken a ‘substantial amount’ of psychoactive mushrooms.

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The police officer described Mr Vargas as having suffered a “mental decline” in the time between taking the drug and entering the water, adding that there were no previous examples of similar behaviour from him.

One of Mr Vargas’ friends was later arrested for possession with intent to supply, he added.

A toxicology report carried out by Dr Limon Nahar of Imperial College London confirmed that psilocin, the main active psychedelic chemical found in magic mushrooms, was present in samples.

His cause of death was given as immersion in water.

Coroner Sophie Mortimer recorded a conclusion of misadventure, telling the court: “Joe entered the River Thames near the pagoda in Battersea Park and he was subsequently seen in difficulty.

“He had been seen consuming magic mushrooms and a post mortem and toxicology tests identified Psilocin and cannabis metabolites.”

Addressing Mr Vargas’ parents, Ms Mortimer added: “I know how difficult it must be to come and listen to all of this. I’m very sorry for your loss.”

Mr Vargas’ family have criticised the Met Police over confusion with the identification of his body and the length of time taken to identify the remains, as well as issues with a family liaison officer who went on holiday and apparently wasn’t replaced.

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