An inquest heard young jeweller Ellie Naomi Cahoon, 30, took her life – her mother shared a touching tribute to her ‘fun, loving, very vibrant’ daughter
Ellie Naomi Cahoon took her life(Image: Facebook/Neal Buckley Funerals)
A 30-year-old “warm hearted” jeweller took her own life after experiencing a “toxic” relationship, an inquest heard.
Ellie Naomi Cahoon, a diamond expert from Preston, was tragically found dead by her partner at their home, in Hutton, on January 18, 2026. An inquest into the 30-year-old’s death heard how the jeweller had been dealing with several struggles in the weeks and months before she died. Preston Coroners Court heard the “main one” had been her relationship as at the inquest on Friday.
Before Ellie’s death, her loved ones said the young woman struggled with her partner’s behaviour. The pair had been in an on and off relationship whilst he struggled with alcohol and substance abuse.
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She was found at her home on January 18, 2026(Image: Facebook/Ellie Cahoon)
This reportedly put pressure on their relationship, which was described as “toxic” and “unhealthy”. During their relationship, Ellie’s family said the young woman was too worried to leave her partner on his own out of fear he would start drinking or take cocaine.
The inquest heard that when the man took substances he and Ellie would start arguing, and that the way he would act while under the influence would “severely distress her”. In one instance, before her death, the two had argued and Ellie said she would take some pills – the jeweller was then later found at her sister’s home and a domestic abuse risk assessment was carried out by police.
In the weeks that followed, Ellie was described to be in a “low mood, irritable and tired”, according to LancsLive. The 30-year-old had also been struggling following the death of her grandmother, in 2025. The inquest heard the young woman was reportedly having difficulty sleeping and was experiencing nightmares.
Ellie had told her mum, around the festive period, that she found Christmas and New Year’s very hard as it was the first festive period she had spent without her grandma. Despite this, Ellie had been looking to the future by making plans with her friends, she booked a holiday with her family and was getting ready for her driving test, which was booked for February.
According to her partner, the two were planning to buy a new house, and just days before her death they were discussing having children together. Preston Coroners Court heard Ellie and her partner argued on January 17. The man then went out drinking with his friends and ignored Ellie’s phone calls. When he returned back at their home the next morning, he found her dead on the stairs, and he left the house in distress.
According to one neighbour, he was screaming “she’s gone” and “I can’t live without her. I don’t know why she has done it, I can’t live without her”. Another local said they heard him shout “why have you done this I can’t cope without her” and “I can’t live without her, we only had an argument”.
At the inquest, Ellie’s mother paid a touching tribute to her daughter and said: “It’s hard to think about what made her happy at the moment, the only memories coming to the front of my mind is what happened. She was very fun, loving, very vibrant. She had an absolutely cracking sense of humour.
“She loved going out with her friends, she loved her family. She was everything to us. She very much was warm hearted and she loved to celebrate people. She was quick witted and really funny, she was just full of life, vibrant and beautiful.”
The inquest also heard how Ellie had also won a “shining star award” at Rolex the year before she died and that she had plenty of certificates of her achievements whilst she worked at H.S. Samuels, Ernest Jones and Loop – her mum described her girl as “very professional”. In a statement read out in court, it was heard that Ellie “tried to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders”, and that she was a “very stoic person” but “the only person who could make her cry was her partner”.
Concluding the inquest, Area coroner Kate Bisset said: “I have no doubt that that contributed to a deterioration in her health and wellbeing. It wasn’t the sole concern in her life but it seems to be the main one. [Ellie] died by suicide but it also seems abundantly clear that she would not do that if she was well and happy.”
For emotional support you can call the Samaritans 24-hour helpline on 116 123, email [email protected], visit a Samaritans branch in person or go to the Samaritans website.
