'Roy was in the prime of his life and we’ll take time to reflect'

The three-year wait for Roy Butler’s family to find out what caused his sudden death, just five days after receiving the one-shot Janssen Covid-19 vaccine, on August 17, 2021 has been issued in email form with Cork coroner Philip Comyn returning a "narrative verdict".

Roy’s parents Angela and Martin and his only brother Aaron were hoping for the “truth” to be revealed into what caused the 23-year-old to suffer a fatal bleed to the brain, and after a three-day inquest in Cork last month, the coroner ruled that the cause of his death was a spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage.

With the Butler family seeking a verdict of misadventure after receiving the vaccine, the coroner said on the “balance of probabilities” that he couldn’t conclude that his death was caused by the vaccine.

He said that the medical evidence was best described in the words of Assistant State Pathologist Dr. Margot Bolster as: “I can neither rule in any link with the vaccine nor can I rule it out.” Mr Comyn has recommended that the “Irish Health authorities” consider whether an “information campaign” be taken to inform the public of the need to report adverse reactions to vaccines.

Roy Butler had plans to travel to Dubai after the Covid-19 pandemic and this was the sole reason why he got the Jansen vaccine shot at a pharmacy in Waterford. He took ill in the days afterwards before he was rushed to University Hospital Waterford and from there transferred to Cork, where he died on Tuesday, August 17, 2021.

The talented footballer, who played with Villa and Waterford FC, had no underlying health conditions prior to his death.

In a statement issued to the Waterford News & Star through his brother Aaron this evening, the Butler family said that they would “take time to reflect on the verdict of the coroner and his recommendations that he has issued as a result of Roy’s death”.

They said: “Roy was a young man in the prime of his life, with no health issues to indicate what would ultimately happen to him. He was planning a trip to Dubai, but in order to travel, he needed proof of vaccination."

They said he had one dose of the Janssen Covid-19 vaccine on August 12, 2021, in a local pharmacy in Waterford.

“He sent text messages to friends and family over the course of the next few days complaining of symptoms, such as sore jaw and neck and fatigue." 

On August 16, 2021, Roy was found in bed convulsing and vomiting.

“He was brought by ambulance to University Hospital Waterford, and subsequently transferred to Cork University Hospital where he died on 17 August 2021," his family stated. "He had suffered a catastrophic intercranial bleed.” 

The statement added: “Mr Philip Comyn, the Cork City Coroner, made the decision to have an inquest into Roy’s death as a matter of public interest. As a family we feel it was important that Roy’s death was the subject of a Coroner’s inquest, and it highlights the vital role it has in our society as a fact-finding inquiry.

“It allowed us the opportunity to understand more about the vaccine and discover whether there were other adverse events associated with it. In the lead-up to the inquest, we received a report from Johnson and Johnson identifying 59 people who suffered intracranial haemorrhage within 10 days of receiving the vaccine.

“During evidence, another investigation revealed within 28 days of receiving the vaccine, 36 young adults suffered an intracranial bleed after the first dose, while two others suffered a bleed after a booster dose.

“Dr Margot Bolster, Assistant State Pathologist, said that in 20,000 autopsies, she had never come across a situation where she could not ascertain the cause of death of such a young person, and that a causal link to the vaccine cannot be established or ruled out.

“We are grateful for the support from friends and family throughout the three days the inquest ran, as well as the support from around the country. We will take the time now to reflect on the verdict and the Coroner’s recommendations. We have no further comment to make at this time.”