A cannibal police officer killer handwrote his will two days before he was found hanged in his prison cell, an inquest heard.

Breaking Bad fantasist Stefano Brizzi, 50, who brutally murdered Met Police officer PC Gordon Semple before cooking and trying to eat him, had been taken off suicide watch a month before he died, the hearing was told.

Brizzi was less than three months into a minimum 24-year jail sentence after strangling 59-year-old PC Semple, of Greenhithe, during a drug-fuelled sadomasochistic chemsex session in April 2016, and then tried to dissolve his body in acid.

The Italian national was founded hanged in his cell on February 5 last year, just eight weeks after he was sentenced to life behind bars.

Brizzi met the policeman through gay dating app Grindr and the former Morgan Stanley IT developer invited PC Semple to his flat for a “sleazy session” at his Peabody Estate flat near London Bridge on April 1, 2016.

HIV-positive crystal meth addict Brizzi, who chopped up his victim’s body and dissolved parts in acid then cooked other parts before eating them, had been placed on "suicide watch" just days before his sentence after a judge raised concerns.

Brizzi made a noose in maximum security Belmarsh jail in south east London about a week before a jury convicted him of murder in December 2016, the inquest heard.

The satanist killer was found hanging in his prison cell at about 10am on February 5 just a month after being taken off suicide watch, the hearing was told.

The inquest heard Brizzi was initially on a programme for prisoners considered at risk of harming themselves, but was taken off the programme on December 28 and several days later on January 4 "suicide watch ceased".

The jury was told at the start of the inquest at Southwark Coroner's Court that letters were found in his cell after his death, including a will amended two days before he was found hanging.

Coroner Dr Julian Morris said the inquest will look at the response of prison staff to finding the ligature in Brizzi's cell before his death, as well as the accuracy of assessments made of his mental health.

Dr Morris told the jury: “None of these documents were available to HMP Belmarsh prison staff before the death.

“These were letters dated December 10, 2016, to his best friend, letters to other individuals and family members.

“A handwritten will, written on December 8, and an addendum to the will on February 3, 2017, were also found.”

Jurors heard Brizzi was born in Florence, Italy, and had two degrees in philosophy and computing, and was a web developer for Morgan Stanley bank for more than 20 years.

None of his family were in court for the hearing and jurors were told his siblings and family were all in Italy.

Notes made by a nurse assessing Brizzi when he arrived stated he had “no thoughts of suicide or self harm despite a warning from the court”.

Stuart Lawson, governor of Belmarsh jail, told the court Brizzi was not assessed as “vulnerable” when he first arrived at the category A jail but was placed on a health care ward for assessment.

He said: “Mr Brizzi came through and with the nature of his crime that doesn’t necessarily make him a vulnerable prisoner.

“When interviewed he didn’t feel vulnerable so wasn’t put on the vulnerable wing, he went to health care for assessment.

“That was the right decision for them to make, it is quite normal when a prisoner presents themselves as some sort of risk.

“He was a category A from when he came in and was in a single cell.

"He had a relatively normal existence in prison - he could go to education or the gym and could move about freely.

“He participated in education and asked to be a ‘listener’ (a prisoner who listens to other’s problems and helps liaise with staff) at the time.

"He was going through the training to be a listener, but that could have been complicated because he was category A.

“This activity gives you some sort of idea how he wasn’t a threat because he could move around the prison quite freely.”

After first arriving at Belmarsh Brizzi was kept in the Health Care block for a month before being discharged while still awaiting trial and sent back to general prison population.

Then, upon conviction, Brizzi was put on an ACCT (Assessment, Care in Custody, and Teamwork) in jail on December 6 which is a process for prisoners considered "at risk" and was taken off on December 28.

The court heard prisoners under ACCT documents could be watched 24 hours a day through a Perspex screen as well as moves to special cells which did not have “ligature points”.

Psychiatrist Matthew Cook of Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust said a ligature was found in his cell the day he was convicted but said he made it because he was “bored”.

He said: “Initially when the ligature was found he was adamant he had no suicidal ideation and that he only made the noose because he was bored and frustrated with what was happening at the time through the court case.

“He claimed the ligature was there for a period of time and said he had no intention to harm himself.

“He was frustrated he couldn’t access his bank and had no money for the canteen and that no one in the prison cared for him and he felt ignored.

“He said he had periods of suicidal thoughts throughout his adult life due to his HIV status and losing his job.

“He felt crystal meth had ruined his life and he had lost his job because of it. He found that difficult to cope with.

“He fully expected to spend the rest of his life in prison as he had a life-limiting condition, but wanted to make a life for himself as best he could.”

Brizzi was not diagnosed with a mental disorder and was just “stressed”, Dr Cook told the jury.

The court also heard Brizzi used cannabis for the age of 40 and became addicted to meth in 2013 where he would meet HIV positive men for sex.

Dr Rachel Daly, a consultant forensic psychiatrist from Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I saw him when he came into Belmarsh.

“He said he found family life difficult because they struggled with his sexuality and his HIV status.

“He had some physical health problems relative to him being HIV positive and Hepatitis C.

“He had a history of addiction to crystal meth since he came to London.

“The was no evidence of depression of self harm because of his conviction.

“He had a good insight and felt he had come to prison for a serious charge and had ruined his life through addiction to drugs and lost his job.

“He blamed his crime on drug misuse. He felt his major problems came from prior to coming to prison, he did not believe it was due to any madness.

“He was a very sad man, he had seen he had deteriorated from success to prison but was still anxious to get involved in prison life.”

During the trial jurors were told Brizzi had tried to cook and eat the body parts, with PC Semple’s DNA found on chopsticks, in a cooking pot and in his oven.

A human bite mark was also discovered on one of the officer's ribs, which matched Brizzi's teeth, despite the killer’s claim he only heated the body to help get rid of it.

The inquest continues.