Coach Woolmer 'was not murdered'
Scotland Yard detectives have told Jamaican police that the former Pakistan cricket coach, Bob Woolmer, was not murdered, the BBC understands.
The apparent verdict follows work by a UK Home Office pathologist, who flew to Jamaica to probe Mr Woolmer's death.
A UK newspaper has reported that Jamaican police are to announce that Mr Woolmer died of natural causes.
Mr Woolmer was found dead in his hotel in Jamaica on 18 March after Pakistan's first-round exit from the World Cup.
Days later Mark Shields, Jamaica's deputy police commissioner, announced at a news conference that the 58-year-old former England Test cricketer had been murdered.
'Embarrassment'
According to a report in the Daily Mail newspaper, police in Kingston now believe Mr Woolmer died of natural causes, brought on by chronic ill-health and possibly diabetes.
I think they [the Jamaican police] made a mess of it to be very honest
Asif Iqbal
Former Pakistan player Asif Iqbal has criticised the Jamaican police investigation.
"When they said it was suspicious, after that it should have been dealt with in a normal way instead of being a Hollywood, or Bollywood kind of investigation," he told the BBC on Saturday.
"Every day there were different stories in the newspaper, every day there was a different way of his being murdered. I think they made a mess of it to be very honest."
There has been no confirmation of the report, with BBC sports editor Mihir Bose saying Mr Woolmer's widow has heard nothing about her husband dying of natural causes.
In May, several other reports suggested Mr Woolmer was not murdered, often citing sources close to the investigation.
One member of Jamaica's Labour Party said the case had become a "global embarrassment" for the country's police force.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/w … 714545.stm
Published: 2007/06/02 09:46:49 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Scotland Yard detectives have told Jamaican police that the former Pakistan cricket coach, Bob Woolmer, was not murdered, the BBC understands.
The apparent verdict follows work by a UK Home Office pathologist, who flew to Jamaica to probe Mr Woolmer's death.
A UK newspaper has reported that Jamaican police are to announce that Mr Woolmer died of natural causes.
Mr Woolmer was found dead in his hotel in Jamaica on 18 March after Pakistan's first-round exit from the World Cup.
Days later Mark Shields, Jamaica's deputy police commissioner, announced at a news conference that the 58-year-old former England Test cricketer had been murdered.
'Embarrassment'
According to a report in the Daily Mail newspaper, police in Kingston now believe Mr Woolmer died of natural causes, brought on by chronic ill-health and possibly diabetes.
I think they [the Jamaican police] made a mess of it to be very honest
Asif Iqbal
Former Pakistan player Asif Iqbal has criticised the Jamaican police investigation.
"When they said it was suspicious, after that it should have been dealt with in a normal way instead of being a Hollywood, or Bollywood kind of investigation," he told the BBC on Saturday.
"Every day there were different stories in the newspaper, every day there was a different way of his being murdered. I think they made a mess of it to be very honest."
There has been no confirmation of the report, with BBC sports editor Mihir Bose saying Mr Woolmer's widow has heard nothing about her husband dying of natural causes.
In May, several other reports suggested Mr Woolmer was not murdered, often citing sources close to the investigation.
One member of Jamaica's Labour Party said the case had become a "global embarrassment" for the country's police force.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/w … 714545.stm
Published: 2007/06/02 09:46:49 GMT
© BBC MMVII