A blood clot that killed a man could have been brought on by the stress of being attacked, an inquest heard.

David William Jones, 51, of Troutsdale Grove, east Hull, died at home at about 4.15am on Monday, May 4.

Hull Coroners' Court yesterday heard the father-of-seven had been drinking in The Reindeer pub in Southcoates Lane the previous evening.

Upon leaving the pub, he was allegedly attacked by a group of people and suffered a number of injuries.

Home Office pathologist Dr Alfredo Walker told the court it was possible the thrombosis in Mr Jones's coronary artery, which caused his death, was triggered by stress from the incident.

He said the thrombosis had occurred afterwards and had not been present at an earlier stage.

However, Dr Walker also said Mr Jones had chronic heart disease and "could have died at any time".

He said: "The degree of his underlying coronary disease was such that he was at risk of having some sort of coronary event at any point in time.

"There appears to be a causative link, but I cannot be 100 per cent certain about it."

The court then heard evidence from consultant histopathologist Dr Simon Kim Suvarna, a specialist in cardiovascular pathology, who examined Mr Jones's heart.

He agreed with Dr Walker about the cause of death, but did not agree there was an established link with the previous alleged assault.

The court heard evidence from Mr Jones's widow Mandy. She said Mr Jones had worked as a bin man for 17 years and was unaware he had heart disease.

Mrs Jones told the court she had been drinking in the pub with Mr Jones, her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend.

As they were leaving the pub, she said she had seen her husband being punched and kicked by a group of people she did not know.

She said he only had cuts and bruises and they had walked home together afterwards.

Mr Jones went to bed and was later found collapsed in the bedroom.

The inquest continues.

*A 39-year-old man has been charged with assault in relation to the incident. Three 17-year-old boys and a 23-year-old man have also been charged with affray.