GEORGE TOWN: The Myanmar construction worker who was found dead in a fire at the Odeon building here died from smoke inhalation, say police.
Timur Laut deputy police chief Supt Lee Swee Sake said the post-mortem on Mohamad Boshi Sabi Ullah, 56, confirmed the cause of death as smoke inhalation and that there was no criminal element involved.
Police had initially classified the case as a sudden death.
Earlier, Penang Fire and Rescue Department director Mohamad Shoki Hamzah said the victim's body was found with first-degree burns near the building’s exit after the fire was put out at about 11.15pm on Saturday (May 30).
Several samples were taken from the scene near the victim's body and will be sent to the Fire Investigation Laboratory for analysis, which is expected to take about 14 days.
On Saturday night, a blaze gutted the former Odeon cinema along Jalan Penang here.
An estimated 70 per cent of the premises, now an entertainment outlet known as Midnight Black, was destroyed in the fire. – Bernama
