Mr MacMahon handed down his findings at the Coroner’s Court in Sydney.

It came 13 months on from a nine-day hearing in the Coroner’s Court Glebe and the Downing Centre, Sydney.

During the hearing in December 2013, the court heard allegations that on Alec’s third day on the job at Downer EDI in January 2008, his colleagues, David Hall and Ben Eagle, hung a “sphincter dilation chart” in the workshop, and every time Alec made a mistake the chart would be marked.

When the chart was full Alec was told he would be sexually assaulted by having a steel dildo inserted in his anus.

The court also heard the first person to allegedly mark the chart was Alec’s supervisor, Colin Wiggins.

As a result of the alleged bullying Alec left Downer EDI on May 26, 2008. Then on September 3, 2008 he and his mother moved to his native New Zealand, and on October 13, 2008, he took his own life.

Mr MacMahon said he was unable to make any recommendations or findings on the matter, because on the balance of probabilities he couldn’t established Alec’s cause of death occurred in NSW, which he was required to do under Section 82, of the Coroners Act.

Mr MacMahon said the fact that Alec died in New Zealand meant the specific requirements for a specific connection with NSW as set out in Section 18(2) do not appear to be satisfied.

For Mr MacMahon to have jurisdiction he said he would need to be satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that something associated with NSW produced the effect of, or resulted in, Alec ending his life.

While he was satisfied Alec suffered from clinical depression and his employment with Downer EDI was a substantial contributing factor to that, he said there was no evidence as to what was going on in Alec’s mind at the time he ended his life.

“In particular, there is nothing to suggest that at the time of his death the circumstances of his employment at Downer EDI, or anything else associated with NSW, produced the effect of him acting to end his life,” he said.

“In this case I do not know what precipitating factors led to Alec taking his life. He did not leave a note or say anything to anyone that would allow us to understand what precipitated his action.”

Mr MacMahon said it would be speculation to find that the events at Downer precipitated Alec’s suicide, saying “it could just have well been something else”.

“I cannot therefore be satisfied to the standard of proof required that the cause of death occurred in New South Wales,” he said.

“As a consequence I do not have jurisdiction to make findings or recommendations.”

Mr MacMahon said he did not believe it appropriate to consider what recommendations, if any, would be appropriate to make if he had the jurisdiction to do so.

Alec’s family did not come to Sydney to hear the findings, but are expected to make a statement next week.