A man lying in the A120 was run over by a police car sent to help him, an inquest heard.
Edward Langstone, 55, was walking from Coggeshall towards Colchester after a night out on Saturday, January 3, when a Tesla hit him.
An inquest at Essex Coroner’s Court heard Mr Langstone, who lived in Clacton, was lying in the road when the Tesla hit him and at least two other vehicles, including a marked police car with its blue lights on, then ran over him.
A Ford Transit that struck Mr Langstone was later set on fire in a lay-by, while police closed the road for 10 hours to investigate a suspected hit-and-run.
Officers reviewed dashcam footage and interviewed the drivers whose vehicles hit Mr Langstone, but no one was charged.
Coroner Michelle Brown said: “The reason why there wasn’t a prosecution is because it could not be established who, out of the various vehicles, was responsible for Mr Langstone’s death.”
She said Mr Langstone had been out with friends in Coggeshall on Friday, January 2, and left the following morning.
She said: “It is believed he left on foot, stating he would get a taxi back to Clacton.
“For reasons unknown, he is believed to have walked from Coggeshall and joined the A120 – a number of witnesses report seeing a male matching his appearance walking along the A120 in the general direction of Clacton.”
Mrs Brown said witnesses saw Mr Langstone stumbling and trying to “thumb a lift”.
She continued: “At some point, for reasons unknown, he has ended up lying in the carriageway of the A120 which is an unlit section of road.
“While still lying prone in the Colchester-bound carriageway, a Tesla has collided with him - he was lying in the road at the time he was struck by the Tesla.
“He was then struck by a Volkswagen Caddy van and a marked Essex Police vehicle travelling under emergency conditions having been allocated in the original report of him walking along the road.”
She said a Ford Transit struck Mr Langstone last, trapping him underneath.
She said: “About 1.5 miles from the location [of the collision], a witness reported a male parked in a layby seen to remove jerry cans from the vehicle and set fire to the vehicle.”
Mr Langstone suffered extensive injuries and was identified through the driving licence in his pocket and a phone found nearby.
Toxicology tests found alcohol and cocaine in his bloodstream.
A post-mortem found Mr Langstone’s injuries were consistent with him being struck while lying down: he had no shin fractures or glass-related injuries expected if he had been hit while standing.
Mrs Brown said there was no evidence anyone else was involved.
She ruled that Mr Langstone died from multiple injuries caused by several vehicles hitting him as he lay on the unlit A120.
The inquest concluded that Mr Langstone died in a road traffic collision.
Police had earlier arrested a man in his 40s on suspicion of failing to stop, but the investigation was later closed.
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