Remains of some British victims of Air India crash ‘wrongly identified', says lawyer
Aviation lawyer James Healy-Pratt, whose firm Keystone Law is representing more than 20 British families who lost loved ones in the disaster, said relatives of one victim found out a casket contained 'co-mingled' remains, while a different family were told a coffin contained the body of someone else entirely.
Mr Healy-Pratt said the mistakes emerged after the 'sterling efforts' of senior coroner for inner west London, Dr Fiona Wilcox, who 'picked up DNA anomalies'.
'In the first two caskets that were repatriated, in one of the caskets, there was co-mingling of DNA which did not relate to the deceased in that casket or the casket that accompanied it and so that's what alerted her and her team to the fact there was a serious problem,' he told the PA news agency.
One particular loved one was not at all who the family thought they were
'My understanding was that the co-mingling was at the very beginning, which alerted Dr Wilcox to the fact that she had to be 100pc assiduous about checking the identification of the incoming remains.
'She was then able to determine that one particular loved one was not at all who the family thought they were.'
The family of three British victims who were buried in India after the crash said there was a 'clear lack of transparency and accountability'. Relatives of Akeel Nanabawa, his wife Hannaa Vorajee and their four-year-old daughter Sara Nanabawa said in a statement: 'Recent developments have only confirmed what many feared: that serious mistakes may have been made, and that the dignity and rights of victims and their families were not safeguarded as they should have been.
'In our case, we are confident that we received the correct bodies, based on the hospital's assurances, autopsy reports, their clothing and the personal belongings we recovered.
We are deeply troubled by what this means for other families
'But our concern now is not limited to ourselves. We are deeply troubled by what this means for other families who may still be searching for certainty and closure. This isn't just a personal tragedy; it is a collective one.'
Mr Healy-Pratt added: 'Somebody has to take responsibility in India for this massive screw-up and then they actually have to ensure that they can give proper assurances to the families that the job has been completed and done properly.'
His firm has demanded a written explanation from Air India, including on the involvement of its contractors Kenyon International Emergency Services.
PA has approached Air India's parent company, the Tata Group, and Kenyon Emergency Services for comment.
A spokesperson for the UK government said: 'We understand that this is an extremely distressing time for the families, and our thoughts remain with them.
'Formal identification of bodies is a matter for the Indian authorities.'
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