14 Dec 2012

UK police may look to Australian witnesses

9:38 pm on 14 December 2012

Police in Britain say they may seek to interview Australian witnesses as they investigate the death of the London nurse, Jacintha Saldanha.

A British coroner has opened the inquest into the death of the 46-year-old, who answered a prank call from two Australian radio presenters on 4 December, the ABC reports.

Her body was later discovered by work colleagues in the nurse's quarters at King Edward VII hospital in London.

During a brief coronial hearing on Thursday, British police said there were no suspicious circumstances involved.

Detective chief inspector James Harman told the Westminster Coroner's Court she left three notes before she died.

He said two notes were found in her room and another was among her possessions.

He did not reveal their contents.

Detective chief inspector Harman said Scotland Yard will "in the very near future" contact Australian police about interviewing witnesses.

The court was told British police are liaising with their New South Wales counterparts to gather more evidence in the case.

Police are are also looking at telephone calls and emails to see if they shed more light on Ms Saldanha's death.

Ms Saldanha's husband Benedict Barboza, and their two teenage children, did not attend the hearing.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox told 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."

The hearing was only to open the inquest into her death.

The full inquest will be held in March 2013 after toxicology tests and further investigations.

In England, inquests are held to examine sudden or unexplained deaths and can record any one of a number of possible verdicts including suicide or misadventure. They do not apportion blame.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has opened an investigation into the radio station behind the prank, 2Day FM.

During the stunt, Mel Greig and Michael Christian called the hospital posing as the Queen and Prince Charles and got information about Prince William's pregnant wife Catherine.

The DJs remain off the air, and the radio station has pledged to donate at least $A500,000 to a memorial fund for Ms Saldanha's family.