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The family of former Interior Cabinet secretary Joseph Nkaissery has ruled out foul play could have led to his death.
A six-hour postmortem conducted by a team of pathologists led by chief government pathologist Johansen Oduor concluded that Nkaissery suffered a massive heart attack in his house that killed him instantly.
The postmortem conducted by a team of pathologists at the Lee Funeral Home showed a blood vessel to the heart was compromised.
Acute attack
“He suffered an acute heart attack occasioned by a compromised vessel taking blood to the heart,” said Bessie Byakika, who represented the family in a six-hour autopsy at the Lee Funeral Home.
She said further probe would be conducted on samples collected from the body.
Dr Byakika said the family had ruled out foul play even as investigations went on.
“There is no evidence of foul play at this stage but further tests will be conducted to tell us more,” she added.
“He suffered myocardial infection due to a ruptured vessel of the blood. He suffered sudden onset fatal heart attack. One of the vessels supplying blood to the heart was severely compromised,” she added.
Byakika said the condition can be caused by age, food, blood clot, long sitting position of an individual, among other triggers.
It also emerged the CS collapsed in his bedroom. The retired major general was pronounced dead on arrival at the Karen hospital at dawn on Saturday.
His wife told police Nkaissery was not on any medication at the time of his death.
Doctors found almost a pint of blood in his stomach.
A team of pathologists led by chief government pathologist, Dr Johansen Oduor, Dr Byakika, Dr Charles Kariuki, Dr Andrew Gachie and Dr C Baraza conducted the exercise.
Family pathologists
Two other family pathologists were present alongside Lawyer Maiyan Sankale.
Nairobi DCI boss Nicholas Kamwende and Kilimani head of DCI Philis Kandie were also present, and so was a team from the homicide department.
The CS’s family led by the wife Hellen, who had been discharged from hospital, a son and two daughters later came to the mortuary where they were briefed on the preliminary findings of the six-hour autopsy.
Director of Medical Services Jackson Kioko also arrived at the funeral home and held a meeting with the pathologists before leaving.
Yesterday, the family announced Nkaissery would be buried on Saturday at his Bissil home in Kajiado County.
The burial will be preceded by a memorial service on Thursday at the Nairobi Baptist Church in Nairobi.
The pathologists kept the media waiting before releasing their findings.
Even though the exercise was concluded at 4 pm, the family was called into the mortuary for a briefing on the findings, pushing forward the planned media conference.
The exercise that started at about 10.30am ended at about 4pm.
The findings will now guide police investigations into the death that happened on Saturday morning.
Busy day
Nkaissery collapsed and died moments after arriving at his home.
The CS had had a busy day on Friday with trips to Kasarani, Uhuru Park, Nyayo House and Bomas of Kenya where he had a light meal and drinks with friends.
He then proceeded home at about 9pm and later received a call from the President, among other people.
It was then that his security was urgently summoned to take him to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Police have so far questioned more than ten people who were with the CS before he died.
They include waiters at the hotel, his security, doctors at Karen hospital, his wife and friends he had met
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