Autopsy results revealed the two former Navy SEALs found dead on the Maersk Alabama last week died of respiratory failure linked to drug use. Authorities found traces of heroin and needles in the cabin.
CNN reported:
Autopsy results indicate two American security officers found dead on the container ship Maersk Alabama last week died of respiratory failure, coupled with a suspected heart attack, police in the Seychelles said Tuesday.
Further forensic analysis will be carried out to establish if the two men, Jeffrey Reynolds and Mark Kennedy, had consumed a substance that may have brought on these events, a police statement said.
Traces of narcotics were found with the bodies of the officers, it said.
“The police preliminary investigation report includes suspicion of drug use, as indicated by the presence of a syringe and traces of heroin which were found in the cabin,” the statement said.
The two men, both 44, worked for Trident Group, a Virginia-based maritime security services firm. Trident Group President Tom Rothrauff said both were former Navy SEALs.
The 500-foot Maersk Alabama was the target of an attempted hijacking in the pirate-infested waters off East Africa in 2009 — an incident that inspired the 2013 film “Captain Phillips.”
For the record: A Navy veteran I know said it was unlikely the former SEALs were addicted to heroin unless they suffered chronic pain from old injuries. An autopsy performed in Africa makes him very suspect.