JOHANNESBURG - In the Sunday Times this week Mzilikazi wa Afrika and Stephan Hofstatter reported that, according to a confidential autopsy report, the recently deceased Mpumalanga politician James Nkambule was probably poisoned to death.  

Wa Afrika and Hofstatter write that Nkambule, who died suddenly on Thursday last week, "had recently met with police commissioner General Bheki Cele to discuss efforts to bring a Mozambican man, known in the criminal underworld as "Josh", to South Africa, where he was to be placed under a witness protection programme....Josh has since claimed in an affidavit, now in the possession of the police, that he was hired by Mpumalanga officials and a soccer boss as a "cleaner" from 2000 until 2009 to eliminate political and business opponents."

Nkambule "was due to appear in court this week on charges of fraud and defeating the ends of justice after police accused him of fabricating the sworn statement by Josh."

Below follows an html transcript of the autopsy conducted on Nkambule's body by Dr G Gantchev on October 11 2010:

GW 7/15

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
MPUMALANGA PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT
OEPARTEMENT OF HEALTH & SOCIAL SRVICES
REPORT ON A MEDICO-LEGAL POST MORTEM EXAMINATION

Death Register No 36/2010

To the magistrate of BARBERTON

I, DR G P GANTCHEV, do hereby certify:

that at The MEDICO-LEGAL LABORATORY NELSPRUIT on the 11th OCTOBER 2010

(1) commencing at 15H00 I examined the body of a Adult black male

(ii) that this body was identified to me -

(a) by LILIAN SIYAPHI NKAMBULE of STAND 484 EXT 5 BARBERTON that of DR 36/2010 and

(b) as being JAMES VUSUMUZI NKAMBULE and whose reputed/estimated age was 37 yrs

(ii) that death took place as informed on 2010/10/07 AT

(iii) that the chief post mortem findings made by me on this body were the following:

- No visible external injuries.

- ± 30 ml of petrol derivate smelly stomach content suggestive of organophosphate poison ingestion.

(iv) that, as a result of my observations a schedule of which follows, I concluded that the cause of death was the following:

PENDING TOXICOLOGY RESULT.

Dated at NELSPRUIT this 11th OCTOBER 2010

Signature:
Name: DR G P GANTCHEV
Qualifications: M B Ch B
Designation: Chief Medical Officer MPUMALANGA
OFFICIAL POSTAL ADDRESS: P.O. BOX 9530 NELSPRUIT 1200

SCHEDULE OF OBSERVATIONS

GENERAL

1. Height: 1,73 m
Mass: 115kg
Physique: Tall
Nutrition: Obese - grade I-Il
2. Special identifying features: Adult black male; circumcised.
3. Secondary pest-mortem changes: Rigor mortis present throughout the body. Lividity established over the back of the body.

4. External appearance of body and condition of limbs: 1. No visible external injuries.

5. Skull and Scalp - Intact unremarkable.

6. Intra cranial: - Congested.
Brain mass: n/a

7. Orbital, nasal and aural cavities: - Intact; unremarkable.

8. Mouth, tongue and pharynx: - Intact; unremarkable.

9. Neck structures: - Intact; unremarkable.

CHEST

10. Thoracic cage and diaphragm: Intact; unremarkable.

11. Mediastinum and ocsophagus: White foamy material inside the oesophagus.

12. Trachea and bronchi: White foamy material in the trachea.

13. Pleurae and lungs: Congested.
Right: - N/A g.
Left: -N/Ag.

14. Heart and pericardium: - Coronaries - 20 % to 40 % occlusion by atheromata.
Heart mass: n/a

15. Large blood vessels: - Intact- minimal atherosclerotic changes of abdominal aorta.

ABDOMEN

16. Peritoneal cavity: Clean.

17. Stomach and contents: - 1 30 ml of brownish fluidly mixture smelly of organophosphate poison (smells of petrol).

18. Intestines and mesentery: - Unremarkable.

19. Liver, gall-bladder and biliary passages: - Gall-bladder ± 15 ml of bile. Liver mass: n/a

20. Pancreas: . - Congested.                       Pancreas mass: n/a

21. Spleen - Congested.                              Spleen mass: n/a

22. Adrenals: - Congested.

23. Kidneys and ureters: - Congested.        Kidney mass: R - n/a L - n/a

24. Urinary bladder and urethra: - Empty.

25. Pelvic walls: - Intact.

26. Genital: - Intact unremarkable.

27. Spinal column: - Intact.

28. Spinal cord: Not dissected.

SPECIMENS RETAINED:

ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS:

People present at the autopsy - W/O M P Molapo of SAPS Organised Crime DPCI Nelspruit - Tel: 082 7823 024, 013 759 1122

Source: TimesLive.co.za (Transcribed from PDF. Please check against original.)

Click here to sign up to receive our free daily headline email newsletter