South African Ambassador to France Emmanuel Nkosinathi Mthethwa died on Tuesday after falling from the 22nd floor of a Paris hotel where he had been staying. The 58-year-old former cabinet minister was discovered outside the Hyatt Hotel in Porte Maillot after his wife reported him missing on Monday evening. French investigators found that the secure window in his room had been forced open before the fatal fall occurred.
Mthethwa faced scrutiny at the Madlaga Commission over allegations that he tried to protect former crime intelligence chief Richard Mdluli from prosecution. KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi testified that Mthethwa attempted to persuade Inspector General of Intelligence Faith Radebe to dismiss charges against Mdluli. Parliament had scheduled Mthethwa to answer questions before an ad hoc committee investigating police corruption. South Africans expressed suspicion about the timing of his death during the ongoing commission hearings.
Mthethwa faced scrutiny at the Madlaga Commission over allegations that he tried to protect former crime intelligence chief Richard Mdluli from prosecution. KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi testified that Mthethwa attempted to persuade Inspector General of Intelligence Faith Radebe to dismiss charges against Mdluli. Parliament had scheduled Mthethwa to answer questions before an ad hoc committee investigating police corruption. South Africans expressed suspicion about the timing of his death during the ongoing commission hearings.
