Victim's family wants answers, says kin's demise mysterious

Even after receiving postmortem results, UK tourist Lutfunisa Khandwalla's family is still seeking answers on what exactly happened to her while in Kenya.

The family said she died mysteriously in 2020 after joining a cult in Mombasa and the post-mortem results revealed that the brain and oesophagus were still intact two years after her burial.

Johansen Oduor, the Chief Government Pathologist, told the family that the brain of the late tourist was found shrunken inside the skull after a postmortem was conducted at the Coast General Hospital in Mombasa.

"The brain is shrunken and found inside the opened skull. It was intact. The cause of death is unascertained pending histology, toxicology and DNA analysis," said the report released to the family by Dr Oduor.

The report has deepened the mystery surrounding the death of the woman who travelled to Kenya in August 2019 but avoided her family after joining what the family believes was a cult.

The family said it believes the condition of the brain could be a sign that there was foul play since Muslims do not preserve bodies.

The family alleges that Khandwalla was given a chemical which froze her organs after her spiritual leader told her that it would cure her.

Dr Ancet Kituku, a surgical pathologist, said it is only the pathologist handling the investigation that can explain the cause of Khandwalla's death.

"The brain will remain intact if there are no bacteria to help in decomposition," Dr Kituku said.

Oduor in his report showed that Khandwalla's trachea and bronchi were normal.

"The body was skeletonising, with a few areas still having flesh. It was of a female adult of Asian origin, based on skeletal features, facial skull features and hair," the report released on October 27, 2022, said.

Oduor said vital organs such as the lungs, heart, liver and other vessels were found to have completely decomposed and were not identifiable.