After Chanatorn Croghan was arrested for starting the blaze that killed his grandmother, Vera, at her home on Unthank Road in December 2020, detectives began to trawl his background.

They found that Marco, as he was known to the family, had grown-up in Thailand but in 2017 he moved to Norfolk as a young teen to be with his father following a violent attack on his mother with a BB gun.

Marco Croghan (Image: Norfolk Police)

Officers also found a long history of his dealings with mental health services in the UK, including the chilling detail that he had been assessed as posing a high risk to others, six months before the fateful fire.

Police also began to piece together what they knew 89-year-old Vera, a respected former UEA academic and author of a best-selling Teach Yourself Swedish book.

Here, the evidence indicated that officials seemed far less concerned with her than they had been about her grandson, who was staying with her.

No checks were made on her living conditions, for instance. No one asked her what her wishes were about his presence in the house or made any assessments of her safety.

This discrepancy in the treatment between the two emerged at the inquest last month into Vera's death.

And it has added to the grief of her family.

Three of Vera’s four children - Karin, Mike and James - were represented at the hearing by Leanne Devine, partner at Leigh Day.

"There was a lack of professional curiosity concerning Vera’s wishes, her wellbeing and her safety," Ms Devine said.

Vera Croghan (Image: Newsquest / Supplied)

The four-day inquest ended with Yvonne Blake, the area coroner for Norfolk, concluding that Vera was unlawfully killed.

But the process left the family frustrated and disappointed.

They had hoped that more scrutiny and attention would be paid to the way police, mental health services and adult social care officials dealt with Vera and her grandson.

They were particularly frustrated by the coroner's decision not to obtain Marco's mental health records, so as to make sure his privacy was respected.

Vera Croghan (Image: Newsquest........

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