Emmanuel Nkosinathi Mthethwa – the South African ambassador to France – disappeared yesterday, but his body has been found today at the Hyatt Hotel in Paris after he fell from the 22nd floor
The South African ambassador to France has died in a fall from the 22nd floor of a hotel after going missing.
Emmanuel Nkosinathi Mthethwa disappeared yesterday, but his body was found today at the Hyatt Hotel in Paris. The 58-year-old was reported missing by his wife, “who indicated having received a worrying message from him in the evening,” the Paris prosecutor’s office said.
His body was eventually found nearby, “right above” the famous Hyatt Hotel in Porte Maillot. “He had booked a room on the 22nd floor, whose secure window was forced open.”
Police originally sent dogs from the canine brigade to the Bois de Boulogne – a park and bonatical garden in Paris where Mr Mthethwa’s phone last pinged, but the animals were unable to locate him there. “Fearing a possible suicide, the police, supported by the dog squad, had searched the woods in western Paris,” the Paris Proesecutor’s office said.
The diplomat made one of his last public appearances at the 109th Anniversary of the Battle of Delville Wood marked in Longueval, Departement de la Somme, on Saturday.
Mr Mthethwa was originally posted to the French Embassy in February 2024 and was also South Africa’s permanent delegate to UNESCO. He previously served as the Minister of Arts and Culture of the Republic of South Africa from May 2014 to 2019, before working as the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture between 2019 and 2023.
Between 2007 and 2022, Mthethwa served as a member of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the African National Congress (ANC) – the party’s chief executive organ and highest decision-making body between conferences. During this time, he was a member of the National Working Committee (NWC) of South Africa’s governing party, which is responsible for the day-to-day running of the party and making recommendations to the NEC.
Mthethwa grew to become a prominent politician after having begun his career in the anti-apartheid trade union struggle.
South Africa’s foreign affairs department described Mr Mthethwa’s death as a “national loss”, adding French authorities were investigating the circumstances. The department said in a statement: “Ambassador Mthethwa was a distinguished servant of the nation, whose career was marked by dedicated service in critical ministerial portfolios.”
French officials have not yet made any public comments on the incident.
An investigation has been launched by the Brigade for the Suppression of Crimes Against Persons (BRDP) of the Paris judicial police, Le Parisien reports. A duty magistrate is also “goincg to the scene,” the prosecutor’s office said, while Mthethwa’s relatives are said to have been questioned by police.
The South African embassy in Paris remained unreachable on Tuesday morning, the publication added.
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