Stomach of Aer Lingus passenger who died after biting another traveler yields cocaine bags that burst

The Brazilian man, apparently named after a US president, who bit another passenger aboard Aer Lingus Flight EI 485 from Portugal to Ireland and died later turned out to have died after a package of drugs in his stomach burst. An autopsy revealed that the guts of 24-year-old John Kennedy Santos Gurjao had 800 grammes of suspected cocaine.

According to Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margot Bolster from Cork University Hospital, the plastic pack inside his stomach contained 80 wrapped pellets of powder. The drugs are estimated to be worth $64,000, reports Mashable.

RTE News reports that one of the pellets probably ruptured which explains why Gurjao appeared to be sick and had to climb over seats to rush to the toilet because the cabin crew were blocking the aisle while serving drinks at that time. However, he never made it to the toilet.

Some of the packages were recovered from Gurjao’s body and have been sent to the laboratory for forensic analysis. Bolster also order more toxicology tests to be made on the dead passenger.

Gurjao collapsed outside. As he was being assisted, the Brazilian man convulsed that the crew had to restrain him by handcuffing Gurjao. It was at this point that he bit a passenger.

While airborne, there were several attempts to revive him using CPR, until the plane, which was diverted, landed. But at that time, Gurjao was already dead.

Bolster said the hospital is still testing to confirm if what was inside Gurjao’s body is cocaine. Irish authorities, meanwhile, are coordinating with police in Portugal and Brazil to track the passenger’s movement and inform his family.

A 44-year-old female passenger from the same flight was taken in custody. She was seen with Gurjao at the airport in Portugal and when police inspected her luggage, it yielded 1.8 kilogrammes of white powder, according to Irish Times. The woman is Portuguese but lived in Dublin for several years. The police are questioning her relationship with Gurjao.

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