SYDNEY: Australian officials have demanded answers from Indonesian counterparts after the body of a young man who died on the resort island of Bali was repatriated without his heart.
Queensland man Byron Haddow (pic), 23, was found dead in the plunge pool of his Bali villa this year while on holiday.
His body was returned to Australia four weeks later, where a second autopsy found he was missing his heart.
A spokesperson for Australia's foreign ministry said Tuesday (Sept 23) they were providing consular assistance to Haddow's family but could not comment further owing to privacy obligations.
"They just rung us to ask if we were aware that his heart had been retained over in Bali," mother Chantal Haddow told Australia's Channel Nine.
"Just when I thought I couldn't feel any more heartbroken, it was another kick in the guts," she said
"I feel like there was foul play. I think that something's happened to him prior to being in the pool."
Senior Australian officials in Bali and Jakarta have made representations to the Indonesian Government regarding the matter.
The Australian Consulate-General in Bali has also conveyed the family's concerns to hospital officials.
But the forensic doctor who performed the original autopsy rejected claims of wrongdoing.
"For forensic purposes, his heart was tested and was kept behind when the family repatriated the body home," doctor Nola Margaret Gunawan told The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper on Monday.
"I have given the autopsy result and explanation to the family. They have accepted my explanation."
Indonesia remains a popular tourist destination, with official data showing it was the top destination for short-term trips overseas by Australians in 2023. - AFP
