Editor’s note: This article mentions suicide. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988. Additional resources are available here.
PARIS — Police are investigating the death of South Africa’s ambassador to France as a possible suicide, after he was found dead outside a Paris hotel Tuesday, according to French authorities.
Laure Beccuau, the Paris prosecutor, said in a statement that the ambassador, Nkosinathi Emmanuel Mthethwa, had booked a room on the 22nd floor of the Hyatt Regency hotel, on the western edge of the French capital. The room’s window had been forced open with scissors that were left at the scene, and Mthethwa’s body was found in the hotel’s courtyard shortly after 11 a.m. by a security guard, Beccuau said.
Mthethwa’s wife had reported him missing to police Monday evening after he sent her a message “in which he apologized to her and expressed the intention to end his life,” Beccuau said. The ambassador booked the room over a week ago, she said.
Investigators did not find any signs of a struggle at the scene, or any evidence that drugs or medication had been involved, Beccuau said in her statement.
“While initial investigations suggest that this may have been a deliberate act, without the involvement of a third party, the purpose of this investigation is to gather any information that may be useful in understanding what happened,” she said.
South Africa’s Foreign Ministry confirmed Mthethwa’s death and said the circumstances were still under investigation.
“I have no doubt that his passing is not only a national loss but is also felt within the international diplomatic community,” Ronald Lamola, South Africa’s foreign minister, said in a statement.
Mthethwa, 58, was appointed ambassador to France in 2023 and started the job the next year. He had long been a senior figure within South Africa’s governing party, the African National Congress.
Mthethwa’s political career began at age 15, when he joined a youth organization that fought against South Africa’s apartheid regime. He was later recruited into the underground movement of the ANC, which had been declared illegal by the white-minority government.
After apartheid ended in 1994, Mthethwa rose through the ranks of his party and the government. He served on the ANC’s national executive committee, its highest decision-making body, and as minister of police and minister of sport, arts and culture before assuming the ambassadorship in Paris.
Mthethwa is survived by his wife and children, South Africa’s Foreign Ministry said.
Where to find help
If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts or have concerns about someone else who may be, call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988. You will be routed to a local crisis center where professionals can talk you through a risk assessment and provide resources in your community.
This story was originally published at nytimes.com. Read it here.