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South Africa’s ambassador to France had “expressed his intention to end his life” in a message to his wife the evening earlier than he was found dead within the courtyard of a high-rise lodge, Paris’ public prosecutor mentioned Tuesday.
Nkosinathi Emmanuel “Nathi” Mthethwa’s wife had reported him lacking on Monday, having final seen him shortly earlier than 4:30 p.m. as “he was scheduled to attend a cocktail party,” prosecutor Laure Beccuau mentioned in a press release.
“(She) then received a message from him shortly after 9:30 p.m., in which he apologized and expressed his intention to end his life,” Beccuau added.
The 58-year-old envoy had booked a room on the twenty second ground of the Hyatt lodge about 10 days earlier than, Beccuau wrote, and had checked in at 4:30 p.m. on Monday.
At 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, a safety guard found Mthethwa’s physique within the courtyard under.
Beccuau mentioned lodge employees had observed “the window’s safety mechanism had been forced open with scissors left at the scene.”
“Investigators found no signs of a struggle or traces of medication or narcotics,” the prosecutor mentioned, including that whereas Mthethwa’s demise appeared to have been self-inflicted, legislation enforcement would conduct an investigation “to gather any evidence useful to understanding the facts.”
NCS has reached out to the Hyatt Group of inns and the Hyatt Regency for remark.
South Africa’s international ministry confirmed Mthethwa’s demise “with deep sorrow and profound regret” in a press release on Tuesday, expressing condolences to the ambassador’s household.
“I have no doubt that his passing is not only a national loss but is also felt within the international diplomatic community,” South Africa’s Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola mentioned, in accordance to Tuesday’s assertion.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa eulogized Mthethwa in a put up on social media on Tuesday, writing that the diplomat had “served our nation in diverse capacities during a lifetime that has ended prematurely and traumatically.”
Mthethwa was appointed ambassador to France in December 2023. He had beforehand served as a member of South Africa’s parliament and as minister of sports activities, arts and tradition, in accordance to his embassy profile.