South Africa’s ambassador to France, Nkosinathi Emmanuel “Nathi” Mthethwa, was found dead Tuesday morning, September 30, in the courtyard of the Hyatt Regency hotel in western Paris after falling from his 22nd-floor room. French prosecutors determined that the secure window in his hotel room had been forced open with scissors found at the scene.
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau revealed that Mthethwa’s wife had reported him missing Monday evening, September 29, after receiving a disturbing message from her husband in which he apologized and expressed his intention to end his life. The 58-year-old diplomat had checked into the hotel at 4:30 p.m. on Monday after leaving his Paris residence, having booked the room approximately 10 days earlier.
A security guard discovered Mthethwa’s body at 11:30 a.m. local time Tuesday in the hotel’s interior courtyard. Investigators found no signs of struggle, medication, or narcotics in the room. Beccuau stated that “initial investigations suggest that this could have been a deliberate act, without the intervention of a third party.”
Mthethwa had served as South Africa’s ambassador to France since December 2023, marking the latest position in a distinguished but controversial political career. He previously held several high-ranking government positions, including minister of police from 2009 to 2014, minister of arts and culture from 2014 to 2019, and minister of sports, arts, and culture from 2019 to 2023.
The ambassador’s career was marked by his anti-apartheid activism as a young man, working within the African National Congress (ANC) military wing and facing arrest during the 1989 state of emergency. He served as a senior official in the ANC from 2007 to 2022 and sat on the board of directors for the 2010 FIFA World Cup local organizing committee.
However, Mthethwa’s distinguished service record was overshadowed by multiple corruption allegations, which he consistently denied throughout his lifetime. As a close associate of former President Jacob Zuma, who faced his own corruption charges, Mthethwa became entangled in several investigative commissions examining government misconduct.
In 2019, testimony before a commission alleged that a luxury vehicle had been purchased for Mthethwa using funds from a secret service account during his tenure as police minister. More recently, provincial police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkwanazi accused Mthethwa of attempting to obstruct the prosecution of a former head of South Africa’s Crime Intelligence Services who was under investigation for corruption. Mthethwa was expected to respond to these allegations before his death.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa responded to news of the ambassador’s death, describing it as an untimely passing that marked a moment of deep grief for the government and citizens. Ramaphosa noted that Mthethwa had served the nation in diverse capacities during a lifetime that ended prematurely and traumatically.
The South African foreign ministry confirmed Mthethwa’s death in an official statement, characterizing him as a distinguished servant of the nation whose career was marked by dedicated service in critical ministerial portfolios. The ministry emphasized that the circumstances surrounding his untimely death remain under investigation by French authorities.
Opposition lawmaker Carl Niehaus expressed skepticism about the circumstances, suggesting that Mthethwa’s death occurred under evidently suspicious circumstances and was not a natural death. French media outlets, including Le Parisien, reported that investigators believed the diplomat likely killed himself, though they did not cite specific sources for this assessment.
The investigation continues as French prosecutors work to gather all evidence useful to understanding the facts surrounding the ambassador’s fall. The case has drawn attention both for the tragic nature of the diplomat’s death and the timing, coming as Mthethwa faced mounting pressure from ongoing corruption inquiries in South Africa.