London, April 1: A new revelation that an upset Bob Woolmer was drowning his sorrows in a bottle of whisky after Pakistan`s shocking exit from the World Cup has fuelled speculation that the murder might just be a tragic accident.
Meanwhile, some of Britain`s leading forensic pathologists have also expressed doubts about the evidence suggesting that Woolmer was strangled and called for a second autopsy to examine the cause of death.
According to a report in `The Mail`, a waitress has described how the 58-year-old sat alone in the bar of the Hotel Pegasus in Kingston after Pakistan crashed out of the World Cup and `drowned his sorrows` with a bottle of whisky.
The witness said that Woolmer sat alone on the team bus after the match, looking `extremely vexed`. At the hotel, he is said to have begun drinking almost immediately, the report said. Most of the Pakistani players went for a dinner to the home of multi-millionaire car dealer Tariq Malik but Woolmer stayed back.
"There was an open invitation for him the previous evening but the players told me drinking Scotch. They said he had drunk up to a bottle and was really drowning his sorrows," Malik said.
Malik, who moved to Kingston from Pakistan 20 years ago, said he met Woolmer twice at the Pegasus. "The only security I saw at the Pegasus was after Bob`s death. Prior to that you could get into the lift and go up to the room." Malik was contacted by Jamaican police five days ago.
Police refused to comment on what Woolmer may have drunk before his death until they have studied the results of toxicology and histology tests. Meanwhile, Britan`s top forensic experts have said a second autopsy is needed to clear the mystery.
They said the publicly available facts on the case indicated a "highly unusual" murder of a type that none of them had ever witnessed, according to a report in `the times`. Britain`s foremost experts on strangulation, bill hunt, a former President of the British association in forensic medicineid said "From what I have seen and read it is virtually impossible, the pathologists believes that it would have been very difficult to throttle Woolmer, a 6ft 1 in former sportsman.
"It is almost impossible to strangle a fit man without a fight and the police say there is no evidence of a struggle. It is virtually impossible to strangle somebody without leaving some marks on the neck." Dr Hugh White, a home office pathologist described the towel theory as "nonsense" as it would have left marks.
White said toxicology tests may explain the lack of a struggle if they indicate Woolmer was drugged. "This is a big heavy man, with no bruising. I Honer come across a case like this.
"In this country it is mandatory to bring in a second pathologist when the initial findings are unclear and the Jamaican police really ought to do the same." The experts also expressed surprise at reports that Woolmer was still alive when his body was found. They said strangulation victims almost always died while being throttled.
"It`s most unusual to have someone alive, found with a pulse. It really is," said Chris Milroy, a professor of forensic pathology at Sheffield University. The pathologists said there may be exceptional circumstance only known to the police but cautioned that natural causes can never be ruled out in such difficult cases.
Woolmer suffered from type 2 diabetes and sudden death from a coronary thrombosis or a stroke is a complication with this condition. It is known that Woolmer reported a stomach
upset on the day before his death and his team`s coach driver said last week that he was coughing, the report said.
Also, claims that there had been a furious row between Woolmer and the Pakistan team on the coach after the Ireland match were denied by driver Bertram Carr. "There were no arguments, no rows. They were despondent because they lost the game," he said.
Bureau Report
