Police and the BBC are to investigate the apparent suicide of a journalist who complained about sexual harassment by a female broadcaster before he died.
The BBC is to appoint an external person to investigate whether it properly handled sexual harassment complaints made by Russell Joslin, a reporter for BBC Coventry and Warwickshire, before his death last week.
Warwickshire police said it would assist the coroner's office with an investigation into Joslin's death. Preliminary results suggest that Joslin died of asphyxiation on 22 October when he was at a psychiatric ward.
Joslin's family have accused the BBC of failing to act on his complaints of harassment made about a female broadcaster.
The allegations are the latest to hit the BBC since the Jimmy Savile scandal engulfed the corporation earlier this month.
Text messages revealed at the coroner's inquest last week show that Joslin explicitly blamed the BBC for his illness just weeks before his death.
One of Russell's texts, sent to a friend on 5 October, said: "I have changed since I was ill, which I blame them [the BBC] for. I loathe the BBC, the entire mindset."
In another text, Russell said his harassment complaints about a female colleague had been ignored. He said: "Who could possibly believe [redacted] are sexual predators and the corporation sweeps allegations under carpet.
"I told you the [name redacted] story? How she pestered me endlessly. I made a complaint. Ignored."
The woman accused of harassing him was reported by BBC News to have denied any wrongdoing.
Joslin's father, Peter, the former chief constable of Warwickshire police, said last week: "I do blame the BBC for Russell's death. I believe he was not listened to when he flagged up his concerns and was repeatedly ignored by his bosses.
"His working conditions at the BBC, where he had worked happily for many years, had become intolerable."
He added: "His treatment at the BBC was certainly a contributory factor, as was the care at St Michael's hospital [the psychiatric hospital]."
A spokeswoman for Warwickshire police confirmed that it was assisting the coroner's investigation and gathering information from Joslin's family, as is normal practice in such cases.
A spokeswoman for the BBC said on Wednesday that it was not in a position to confirm the identity of the external person who will lead the inquiry into Joslin's complaints.
The corporation said in a statement: "Our thoughts and condolences are with Russell Joslin's family, friends and colleagues at this sad time.
"Whilst we cannot comment on specific details, the BBC is committed to working constructively with the family to ensure that their concerns are vigorously addressed.
"What we can say is that we are undertaking an investigation overseen by an external professional to establish the facts about how any complaints made by Russell were reported and how the BBC acted on them. We will also co-operate fully with the coroner's inquest which is charged with determining the cause of Russell's death and will consider its findings carefully."
Joslin's funeral was held on Wednesday in Kenilworth, Warwickshire.
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