Kate nurse left three suicide notes
The nurse who was duped by a prank call from two Australian radio DJs to the hospital treating the pregnant Duchess of Cambridge left three suicide notes, an inquest has heard.
Jacintha Saldanha (46), a mother-of-two from Bristol, was found hanging in her nurses’ quarters by a colleague and a security guard last Friday. There were also marks on her wrist.
Two notes were found in her room and another among her possessions, London’s Westminster Coroner’s Court was told.
Detective Chief Inspector James Harman said: “On Friday 7 December Jacintha Saldanha was found by a colleague and a member of security staff. Sadly she was found hanging. There was also injuries to her wrist.
“The London Ambulance Service was called to the scene. At this time there are no suspicious circumstances.”
Detectives are also looking into telephone calls and emails to see if they throw any light on the death, Mr Harman said.
He told coroner Fiona Wilcox that Scotland Yard detectives would be in contact with their colleagues in Australia to interview witnesses to “put the best evidence before you” about the circumstances of the death.
He said: “I can expect in the very near future to be in contact with colleagues in New South Wales.”
A mass is due to be held for Ms Saldanha at London’s Westminster Cathedral tomorrow.
The mass will be offered “for the repose of the soul of Jacintha and her grieving family”, a spokesman for Westminster Cathedral said.
“We would hope to hold a more formal memorial after the inquest has concluded.”
The body of Indian-born Ms Saldanha was identified by her accountant husband Benedict Barboza, the court heard.
None of Ms Saldanha’s relatives were at the five-minute hearing but they were not forgotten by the coroner.
As she set a provisional date of March 26 for the next hearing, Dr Wilcox told family representatives in the court: “I would like the police to pass on my sympathies to her family and everybody who has been touched by this tragic death.”
Ms Saldanha was fooled by the two DJs into believing they were the Queen and the Prince of Wales during the prank call to the King Edward VII’s Hospital in London.
She transferred the call from the Sydney-based station 2Day FM to a colleague, who described in detail the condition of Kate, who was being treated for severe pregnancy sickness.
