A Police investigation, a private detective and even the promise of a $10,000 reward failed to reveal the whereabouts of Norman Palmer's missing body parts.

And yesterday, after Coroner Khamisi Tokunbo recorded his long-awaited verdict on the cause of Mr. Palmer's death following an inquest, the 57-year-old's family was still utterly in the dark about what happened to his organs and tissues.

Now relatives must wait to find out whether a British inquest — which could delve deeper into the missing body parts issue — will be held in East Somerset in England, from where Mr. Palmer originally hailed.

A pathologist there discovered that the dead man's spleen and stomach, as well as a kidney, two-thirds of his brain and other parts, were missing when his body was flown to the UK for cremation after his death at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital on April 12 last year.

After investigating the case, Bermuda coroner's officer Sergeant Adrian Cook concluded: "The question of 'missing body parts' may never be solved to the satisfaction of the Palmer family."

A source told The Royal Gazette that East Somerset Coroner Tony Williams may decide he is satisfied with the inquiries conducted here and issue a death certificate for Mr. Palmer, closing the case.

But Mr. Williams, who last year asked the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office to assist in an investigation into the missing body parts, could also decide to hold a full hearing in public, requiring witnesses from the Island to travel to England to give evidence.

Jeffrey Elkinson, lawyer for Mr. Palmer's family, said yesterday: "I'm not sure whether there will be an inquest or not. It remains to be seen whether the English coroner will just rely on what transpired here."

He added: "The family feels that there are still answers to be obtained and that a British inquest may be the place to get them."

Testimony given at the inquest here by Bermuda's chief pathologist Kered James — who carried out an autopsy at KEMH — shed no light on where the missing organs and tissues could be. She said she witnessed "every single organ going back into" a bag after the post-mortem was finished.

Funeral director Leon Amis was next to handle the body and told Sgt. Cook that it came with a black plastic bag containing the organs and other items removed during autopsy. He put the contents of the bag into the body cavity on April 15, he explained, and closed the cavity.

The cavity was not reopened again, he said, and the casket containing Mr. Palmer's body was put in a hearse on April 19 and taken to the airport the next day to be flown to Britain.

Ben Batley, East Somerset coroner's officer, said there appeared to be "no irregularities" in terms of the repatriation of Mr. Palmer to the UK. But British pathologist Edwin Cooper said he had some difficulty ascertaining how Mr. Palmer died due to the absent tissues.

Sgt. Cook said in his final report on the case that the findings of the inquiry here would be fully shared with Mr. Williams.

"From their perspective, the issue of 'missing body parts' does indeed have an impact on determining a cause of death'," he wrote.

l In the wake of Palmer's death authorities are urged to look again at how things are done – Page 6