Bob Woolmer murdered, expert insists!

There has been much speculation surrounding Woolmer's death

A Jamaican government pathologist who conducted Bob Woolmer's post-mortem has maintained his view that the Pakistan cricket coach was murdered.

Dr Ere Shesiah's findings prompted a global murder inquiry and speculation about corruption and match-fixing.

But the inquiry was dropped after three independent experts said Mr Woolmer died of natural causes.

Mr Woolmer, 58, died after being found unconscious in his hotel room in March, after his team's early World Cup exit.

Dr Shesiah was speaking on Wednesday at the former coach's inquest, which opened in Jamaica nine days ago.

He is expected to give further evidence on Thursday.

'Strangled and poisoned'

He said his conclusion was based on his own initial findings and the results of a toxicology report.

"I stand by my findings that Mr Woolmer was strangled and, based upon additional information which I received, he was also poisoned," he said.

The pathologist added that police had rushed him to make a final judgement before the report came back, and that he only received it in June - after the murder inquiry was dropped.

He said the poison used was cypermethrin which caused "salivation, vomiting, diarrhoea and muscular incoordination" and that this may have explained the disarray in Woolmer's room when he was found.

Three other pathologists, from South Africa, the UK and Canada, have testified Woolmer died of natural causes, probably related to heart disease.

They also criticised procedures used by Dr Shesiah. He says he used the correct methods to carry out the post-mortem.

Mr Woolmer was found unconscious in his hotel in Jamaica on 18 March after Pakistan were beaten in the cricket World Cup first round by Ireland. He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Days after the discovery of Mr Woolmer's body, Mark Shields - Jamaica's deputy police commissioner - announced at a news conference they were treating the death as murder.

There were suggestions he had been murdered by an angry fan or by an illegal betting syndicate. There was also speculation members of the Pakistan team may have been involved.

Every member of the team was fingerprinted before returning home, but the investigation found no evidence of impropriety by players, match officials or management.

In June, Jamaican police said they accepted the three pathologists' reports concluding that the original finding of death by manual asphyxiation was wrong.