A 17-year-old girl died after she 'inhaled a balloon containing nitrous oxide', lost control of her car and crashed, an inquest has heard.
Lucy Knapp was killed after her Seat Ibiza Xcellence left the road and hit a tree on Headcorn Road between Staplehurst and Headcorn about 8.25pm on June 11.
The teenager had two passengers in the backseat of the Seat - Sam Elliott, 19, and Ashton Stock, 17 – who were both seriously injured in the crash.
While Ms Knapp had a seatbelt on, neither of her passengers did. Both were rushed to hospital with serious injuries and have since been discharged.
An inquest into her death at Oakwood House in Maidstone last Thursday heard evidence from Detective Constable David Holmes who investigated the crash.
DC Holmes told the inquest a Snapchat video had been recovered from Mr Elliott's phone showing Ms Knapp 'with an inflated balloon with the neck of it in her mouth'.
The video, which the investigator said had been recorded 30 seconds before the crash, showed her backseat passengers also had balloons.
He added that several nitrous oxide canisters were later found in the back of the car.
Lucy Knapp (pictured with mother Carlie Shepherd) was killed after her Seat Ibiza Xcellence left the road and hit a tree on Headcorn Road between Staplehurst and Headcorn on June 11
Ms Knapp had passed her driving test just four months before the horror crash (pictured)
Nicole Knapp (left) has described her little sister Lucy (right) as her best friend
DC Holmes told the inquest the most likely conclusion was that Ms Knapp had inhaled a balloon containing nitrous oxide which 'has caused her effects that severely impacted her driving'.
However, a toxicology report by senior forensic scientist Rebecca Stennings found no evidence of drugs or alcohol in Ms Knapp's system.
A pathologist report also noted that although her nitrate levels were 'slightly raised' at 1.33 milligrams, it could also sit in the normal range of someone who, for example, had a vegetable-rich diet.
DC Holmes said he had made repeated efforts to speak to Ms Knapp's passengers.
He told the inquest Mr Stock only gave 'minimal information' and only remembered going to a Sainsbury's in Staplehurst at about 7.30pm. He told police the trio might have got some food or gone to an ATM.
Meanwhile, Mr Elliott and his family had declined to speak to police and relayed that he did not remember anything from the crash, the inquest was told.
When questioned by Ms Knapp's father, James, about the lack of information from the pair, DC Holmes said that he could not 'force someone to talk to us'.
Mr Knapp, who works for the RAF in Cyprus, told the Daily Mail that there was no factual evidence that Lucy had lost control of the car due to drugs.
Mr Knapp, told the Daily Mail that there was no factual evidence that Lucy had lost control of the car due to drugs. He is pictured with his daughters Lucy (middle) and Nicole (right)
He said: 'The only two people that know are Sam Elliott and Ashton Stock.
'They will be the two people to ask. It's disappointing because it puts Lucy in a bad light when really, only those two know what actually happened.
'[It's] something I might never know.'
Lucy Knapp's mother, Carlie Shepherd, told the coroner her daughter was a 'bubbly, forward person' and had been against drugs. She said she had noticed changes when her daughter met Mr Elliott, less than six months earlier.
The inquest was also told that in the last five seconds before the crash, there was initially 'gentle' acceleration until the very last second when there was full acceleration with 'no evidence of braking at any point'.
Kent Police concluded no third-party vehicles were involved and located only one piece of CCTV footage shortly before the crash from a nearby farm.
No footage showed the crash and the car was found to have no mechanical defects.
The inquest heard the Seat had been travelling at around 76mph in a 30mph zone when the airbag deployed at the point of impact.
Coroner Jyoti Gill noted that although Ms Knapp's nitrate levels were 'mildly elevated' when she died, the nitrate levels could be linked to a number of factors.
Her cause of death was recorded as multiple injuries caused by a road accident.
The coroner told the inquest: 'I am unable to conclude on the balance of probabilities that the level detected caused her to lose control of the vehicle.
'The reason she lost control could not be established on the balance of probabilities.'
Nicole Knapp, 20, said: 'To me, Lu wasn't just my little sister; she was my best friend.
'We spoke about everything, gave each other advice, supported each other and, most importantly, made each other laugh.'
Ms Shepherd said her 'beautiful' daughter 'had a way of making everyone smile'.
Over £5,000 was raised to fund a funeral for the 17-year-old, who was born in Oxford but spent most of her life in Ashford.
She is survived by her sisters Nicole, 20, Brooke, 12, and brother, Kacper, six, along with her step-siblings, Eloise, Tia and Kai.
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