Coroner Releases Bob Woolmer's Remains to Family

The coroner in the Bob Woolmer inquest has ordered the murdered Pakistan cricket coach's body be returned to his family in Cape Town, South Africa.

Patrick Murphy had said the body could not be released until after the inquest, but Jamaica's ministry of justice postponed the inquest indefinitely last Wednesday. Government security officials made the decision amid concerns the inquest would stretch police resources with the semi-final of the cricket World Cup being held in Kingston today. The deputy commissioner of police, former Scotland Yard officer Mark Shields, had written to the coroner expressing concerns that matters brought up during the inquest could damage the investigation.

Yesterday Mr Shields was called to the coroner's court and told the body would be repatriated. Mr Shields is to make the arrangements himself.

Woolmer's body remains at a Kingston funeral home. He was found unconscious in his room at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in New Kingston on the morning of March 18 and pronounced dead soon afterwards. A day earlier Pakistan had been knocked out of the world cup by Ireland.

Ejaz Butt, the former test cricketer charged with investigating Pakistan's dismal showing, said yesterday he had found "no indication or proof that any match fixing took place in the matches that Pakistan lost to West Indies and Ireland. At the same time on the issue of Woolmer, all the players and officials were clearly devastated by his death and didn't appear to have any role in his death."