As most would know, it was a widely held belief that the cause of the Somerton Man's death was an overdose of Digitalis. Not that there was a presence of or residue of digitalis tablets found in the autopsy carried out by Dr. Dwyer or, apparently, in the later analysis by Dr.Cowan. It was an assumption made based on the effects and congestion in the organs that led the learned gentlemen of the day to that conclusion.
In a 2019 post, I published a report of a death by Digitalis, in fact, it was the suicide of a medical practitioner. The report states that the man had taken 20 tablets but only fragments of tablets remained in the man's stomach. There were remnants of a rice meal found in the stomach contents. Death can take up to two hours from my reading of the report. The effect includes tachycardia and arrhythmia.
You can download a PDF copy of the findings here:
In 1948, Harry Dexter White apparently ended his life with a massive overdose of Digitalis. The Dexter White story is fascinating and it is recommended reading.
Here's a good starting point..
AN ANSWER:
But, to the point, was there another answer to the question of how the Somerton Man died?
It was whilst I was watching an episode of a serial, Chinese Police drama in fact, that the use of digitalis came up as a murder weapon. But it wasn't just the Digitalis that caught my interest, it was the method of delivery and the presence of a second substance that set in place a chain of thought that has led to this post.
In the case in question, the Digitalis was delivered intravenously, and a hypodermic needle was used. However in order to speed up the process, the digitalis was mixed with bleach. This caused death within 15 minutes and, of course, there was no trace of any tablets in the gut or stomach. The trace was found in the blood. That should ring a few bells for some. Who was it that examined the blood and organs in the Somerton Man case? And bleach?
UPDATED 19th May 2023
A fairly hurried post but you will see from the comments that one follower has a theory that is worth considering. It relates to two escapees from Alcatraz in 1941. I did a little research and found these images:
1. Theodore Cole
2. Ralph Roe
Both men disappeared from Alcatraz on December 16th, 1941
I offer no opinion on this but I think it's worth reviewing and a good find...
An interesting introductory read can be found on the wiki, HERE
I have been sitting on this theory for 2 years, but I have my own candidate on who The Somerton Man may be.
ReplyDeleteOn December 16, 1937, two Alcatraz Prisoners slipped the guards presence and made their way to The San Francisco Bay. To this day, both men are officially listed as missing/escaped. They were Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe. It is my hunch that Ralph Roe may be The Somerton Man because both men share a similar appearance.
The Somerton Man was found dead on the beach. Alcatraz is surrounded by the bay with The Pacific Ocean as a backdrop.
If Roe was The Somerton Man, the reason why he would have removed all identification, he would have been re arrested.
This fits into a theory that some were saying that The Somerton Man was American.
In The San Francisco Chronicle, an article appeared in 1941 suggesting that Cole and Roe were alive and living in South America.
An interesting tid bit, in 1948, a new warden was appointed to Alcatraz, perhaps to replace his predecessor.
If Roe is positively identified as The Somerton Man by police, this will not be reported to the public. There would be too much embarrassment on attempting to explain how an American bank robber ended up in Australia.
Interesting thought. I found some images and have uploaded them in this post. Good find, who knows?
ReplyDelete