By Mark McLaughlin
Edinburgh Evening News
January 5, 2009
A LEADING German politician whose son was found dead in Edinburgh fears his boy was killed by hepatitis.
Lothar Bisky, 67, leader of the German minority Left Party, reported his son Stephan missing when he failed to return home from Edinburgh University in time for Christmas.
He reportedly said: "Stephan [said he] would really like to celebrate Christmas with us. I waited for him at Leipzig airport, but he did not arrive."
The neuro-informatics student was found dead inside his flat on Windmill Place at around 1.05pm on Christmas Eve. Police said there were no suspicious circumstances, but a cause of death had yet to be established.
Following the news of his son's death, Mr Bisky told a German newspaper he rushed to Edinburgh to identify the body.
He said: "I saw him. He looked as though he was sleeping."
Mr Bisky originally vowed to remain in the Capital until the cause of his son's death had been established.
While a pathologist's examination has been carried out, police said the results could have been delayed by the festive holidays so Mr Bisky is understood to have returned to spend the New Year in Saxony, eastern Germany.
Mr Bisky said: "The laboratory tests are still ongoing, but I have discovered that he was being treated in hospital for a hepatitis illness."
Hepatitis is characterised by an inflammation of the liver, and is largely caused by a viral infection or toxins in the blood. It is often transmitted through bodily contact.
Postings on Stephan's Facebook webpage indicated that he may have suffered from seizures.
While seizures are not a common symptom of hepatitis infection, some forms of seizure medication, such as valproate and phenytoin, have been known to cause liver inflammation.
Stephan, 23, apparently suffered one seizure during the RockNess festival in June 2008.
During the festival he took a photo of a sign stating that there would be "No Pass-Outs After 12pm Saturday".
He jokingly commented: "Convulsions were apparently allowed though. Or maybe that's just one of my privileges." In another, showing the fireworks that accompanied the end of the festival, he said: "Who else gets fireworks four hours after a seizure. I rule!"
It is not known what form of hepatitis he was being treated for, or how he may have caught it.
Mr Bisky added: "He enjoyed life to the full, and took part in extreme sports [such as] paragliding, scuba diving, and skydiving. To have overcome these threats and then die of this insidious disease [would be] a terrible fate."
He said his son's body is set to be transferred to Germany this week, and will be buried following a small ceremony with his immediate family.
He said: "He should be buried quietly. My wife is at my side, she is very brave.
"It is as if time stands still. For me, 2009 can only get better."
No comments:
Post a Comment