French authorities are investigating the death of South Africa’s ambassador to France, Nkosinathi Emmanuel Mthethwa, as a possible suicide after he was found outside a Paris hotel on Tuesday.
- Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said the ambassador had booked a room on the 22nd floor of the Hyatt Regency hotel on the western edge of the city. The room’s window had been forced open with scissors left at the scene, and Mthethwa’s body was discovered in the hotel courtyard shortly after 11 a.m. by a security guard.
According to Ms. Beccuau, Mthethwa’s wife had reported him missing on Monday evening after receiving a message in which he apologized to her and indicated his intention to end his life. The ambassador had reserved the room over a week earlier.
Investigators found no signs of a struggle at the scene and no evidence that drugs or medication were involved.
