A PRISONER who was transferred from one jail to another against his will was found dead hours after arriving in his new cell, an inquest heard yesterday.

Andrew McPherson had told his girlfriend he hated Holme House Prison, in Stockton, and complained to court staff on the day he was transferred there.

A jury sitting at Teesside Coroner's Court, in Middlesbrough, heard how the 24-year-old was found hanged after being moved to the Category C jail in March 2002.

McPherson had been on remand for six weeks at Durham Prison on suspicion of offences including burglary and taking a car, which he planned to use to travel to Gretna Green to marry his teenage girlfriend.

Coroner Michael Sheffield was told how McPherson had already made two appearances at North Tyneside Magistrates' Court before the remand hearing on March 6, and was told he was being moved because of overcrowding.

Senior custody officer at the court, John Pike, said McPherson's state had not given staff any cause for concern during his previous appearances, but he became apprehensive and complained after the final hearing when told about the switch.

Mr Pike said he convinced him that his belongings and medication for headaches would be transferred, and that McPherson accepted it and calmed down.

A statement from McPherson's girlfriend, Tamla Davidson, who was 15 at the time, said he hated Holme House but would not say why, although he also said he had been raped while behind bars when he was 21.

McPherson, originally from Scotland but living in North Shields, North Tyneside, at the time of his arrest, had been in and out of custody since he left school.

In a statement, his father, Stewart, who was in court with his wife, said McPherson suffered serious head injuries in a road accident as small child and developed an extreme temper by the age of 14.

Mr McPherson, from Airdrie, said his son often had problems when he was moved from one prison to another and his pills were changed.

Miss Davidson's statement said: "It was not in his nature to harm himself, and would only commit such an act if he felt alone and that he might not see me."

The inquest continues.