An abusive dad passed two security checks at Isleworth Crown Court before killing himself in the dock by downing a lethal overdose, an inquest has heard.

Anandakumar Ratnasabapathy, 40, had just been convicted of brutally attacking his baby daughter when he poured crushed sleeping pills from a paper packet into a bottle of water and drank the fatal cocktail.

He had repeatedly told his interpreter and barrister that he would kill himself if found guilty - but the court security staff had not been alerted and were unaware of his history of mental illness.

A two-day inquest at Fulham Coroner's Court this week heard the Sri Lankan-born defendant told paramedics he had taken a large number of tablets.

Ratnasabapathy had been on bail throughout his trial, where he was convicted of GBH with intent and child cruelty after leaving his daughter quadriplegic, epileptic and partially blind.

The shocking incident on June 28 last year has prompted a "dramatic" change in security procedures at the court, which includes banning defendants from taking their own drinks into the dock.

The coroner's court returned a verdict of suicide.