The family of a “warm and caring” teacher who became addicted to buying banned opioids over the web to cope with her mental health says those supplying her should face legal action.

Karen Gill was found dead in the creek off South Street, Queenborough, on December 9 after being reported missing by her father the same day.

An inquest into the 51-year-old’s death found that her cause of death was drowning, a painkiller overdose, and alcoholic ketoacidosis.

Police continue to investigate the circumstances around the sale of the drugs.

Meanwhile, Ms Gill’s eldest daughter Chloe Guinane has described the loving mum-of-three as a “bright light” who had “so much love to give to the world”.

“I got everything from her – my values, morals, and beliefs,” the 28-year-old said.

“She had really strong morals and impeccable values. She was the funniest, funniest person we’ve ever met.

“She had so much love to give to the world. She needed to learn to love herself. She was just the best mum.”

Ms Gill, of Queenborough High Street, worked as a computer science teacher on Sheppey and in Medway and was well-liked by her colleagues who described her as “one in a million”.

But behind the scenes, towards the end of her life, she was masking her addiction and struggled with alcohol and drugs which she was using to self-medicate for anxiety and depression, the inquest heard.

A toxicology report read out at the hearing, on May 9, detailed how she had taken painkillers before her death.

Detective Sergeant Chris Taylor told coroner Catherine Wood how the mother had last been seen in the High Street area of Queenborough at around 4.30am on December 9.

However, just after 10pm, a member of the public called the police after spotting a body in the creek at low tide, and Ms Gill was identified by officers. The coastguard was called, and rescuers used special mud shoes to recover her body.

Her father, John Guinane, detailed how in the days after his daughter’s death, she was receiving messages from someone who had been selling Ms Gill packets of Tapentadol.

Tapentadol is a strong opioid that has been classed as a Class A drug in the UK and other European countries. Ms Gill’s family say she was ordering up to 60 tablets a week and spending nearly £250.

Mr Guinane told KentOnline: “The people who sold her these painkillers messaged her phone again after she died, asking if she wanted anymore.

“She was ordering vast amounts, and they shouldn’t have given her these drugs. They should be liable to prosecution for manslaughter.

“Karen was ordering them every week, usually 60 at a time, but sometimes even more.”

Mr Guinane has called for the police to investigate the online seller and said he feels more should have been done by professionals to help her.

“I feel let down,” he added. “They should have done more. They could have done more.

“I know the health and mental health service is in a bit of chaos, but she really needed help. She was an urgent case, but nobody saw it like that.

“When she was taken to hospital she was either high or intoxicated, but they wouldn’t deal with her until she sobered up.

“When she was sober she told them what they wanted to hear, that she was fine, and they would send her home.

“We told people she was a danger to herself and others and she needed real, big-time help.

“There’s not enough help out there for anyone. They push you to one side.”

The heartbroken father said now the inquest is “out the way” he will be sending off some of the leftover tablets to see if they were exactly as described or if they were “a mixture of sorts”.

‘She couldn’t get the right help. The NHS doesn’t have enough money or resources to help people...’

Ms Gill was supported by her father John, partner Keith and three children, Chloe, Bradley, 22, and Abigail, 19, during her struggles.

Chloe added: “She was just honestly the best woman.

“I meet people all the time who always tell me she taught them in the past as a teacher and that she was the most incredible woman.”

The teacher used to work as a store manager at Dorothy Perkins in Lakeside, Essex. Chloe said her mum was “always so ambitious and she drilled that into all of us.”

Chloe said Ms Gill’s pupils knew she could be strict but also warm, welcoming and caring to anyone and everyone.

She believes her mum’s mental health took a turn for the worse when she took on a head teacher role at a school in Sittingbourne and lost her own mum to terminal cancer.

That was when the family all tried as hard as they could to get her help, whether it be taking her to appointments or to the hospital when she needed it.

Chloe explained: “She couldn’t get the right help. The NHS doesn’t have enough money or resources to help people.

“Mum thought it would be easier to self-medicate, and it was so strange because it was so unlike her. She was so prideful.

“She found it difficult to ask for help, so she hid it.

“It was honestly the most heartbreaking experience, because there’s nothing you can do. We’d take her to hospital appointments, but they would palm her off as she told them what they wanted to hear. It was just impossible to get her help.”

Chloe said the NHS does an amazing job, but in her mum’s case it wasn’t enough.

“I was so lucky to have her as mum, you know,” she added. “Because what she taught us and gave us was amazing, and the love she gave us was unconditional. She protected us with her life; she was so protective.

“Any room she went into, she would light up the room. She was like a light in the darkness.”

Ms Gill was purchasing them online and was being contacted by those selling her the medication, asking if she was running out.

Speaking about the people supplying these banned substances to those who are addicted, Chloe added: “It’s a trap, isn’t it?

“If you’re being tempted, sort of struggling with something like gambling and you’re getting these emails from betting sites, it doesn’t help you.

“The people with these issues are just getting tempted.

“And then in February, we saw a message on her phone saying ‘have we got any more orders for you?’ and I felt like replying: ‘Actually, you’ve pretty much enabled the death of my mum...’”

Ms Gill grew up in Essex and raised Chloe there before moving to the Isle of Sheppey where her parents lived in Leysdown.

She also lived in Warden Bay before moving to Spain briefly.

DCI Carl Howson, of Kent Police, said: “Our detectives completed an investigation following the tragic death of Karen Gill in Queenborough on 9 December 2024.

“They concluded her death was not suspicious and a report into the circumstances was completed for the coroner.

“Following the inquest on 9 May 2025 into Karen’s death, members of Karen’s family asked Kent Police to examine her online purchase of painkillers. We have agreed to explore this in liaison with her loved ones.

“Our thoughts remain with Karen’s family as they continue to mourn her sad loss.”

If you are struggling with alcohol or drug addiction, you can call the Kenward Trust on 01622 814187.