Year After Mysterious Strychnine Death, an Identification

When a mystery man's body was found in UK, international investigation ensued
By Elizabeth Armstrong Moore,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 27, 2017 6:08 AM CST
A Year After Body Found, Police Reveal Man's Identity
Police believe the man committed suicide.   (Greater Manchester Police)

The man found lying on his back on a patch of grass on the outskirts of Manchester on Dec. 12, 2015, dead of strychnine poisoning, has finally been identified thanks to an international police investigation. Police believe that the man, identified as 67-year-old David Lytton, took his own life, reports the BBC. He'd arrived in the UK via a flight two days prior from Lahore, Pakistan, though he turns out to be English, and his ties to the area remain unknown. Having been found with no ID on him, police initially revealed what they did know: The man had walked into a pub in Greefield, Saddleworth, in the late afternoon on the 11th, and asked for directions to the "top of the mountain," referring to the nearby Indian's Head peak. He was only wearing light clothing and slip-on shoes.

The Guardian reports on a key clue: An autopsy found that that a serious injury to the man's left leg was repaired with a titanium plate exclusively used by a dozen hospitals in Pakistan. Speculating that he could have entered the country from Pakistan, police checked passenger records from dozens of flights from Lahore in the days before his death. They came across a name; an old passport image suggested they were on the right track. A British relative was located and gave a DNA sample, and it matched. Lytton had lived in Pakistan for a decade, and was known as "a bit of a loner" who "liked his own company." Police are still investigating why Lytton chose to visit Saddleworth. Strychnine, used to kill rodents, is more readily available in Pakistan. (This 44-year-old's death in a posh London suburb remains shrouded in mystery.)

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