South Africa's ambassador to France, who was found dead at the foot of the Hyatt Regency hotel in Paris on Tuesday, had left a suicide note to his wife, the Paris prosecutor's office said.
Ambassador Nkosinathi Emmanuel Mthethwa's lifeless body was discovered by a security guard on Tuesday morning in the interior courtyard of the hotel in western Paris, where he had booked a room on the 22nd floor, the prosecutor said.
On Monday evening, his wife had reported her husband missing to the police after receiving a message "in which he apologized and expressed his intention to end his life."
The prosecutor said that in Mthethwa's hotel room the window's safety mechanism had been forced open with scissors - which were left at the scene - but investigators found no signs of a struggle or traces of medication or narcotics.
Initial investigations suggest that this may have been a deliberate act, without third-party intervention, it added.
Mthethwa had booked a room on the 22nd floor, the prosecutor's office said, adding that a secured window had been forced open. It said an investigation was ongoing, and it could not preempt its outcome.
French media, including Le Parisien, said Mthethwa was believed to have killed himself, without citing a source.
The ambassador had been reported missing by his wife after she received a text message from him that worried her, Le Parisien reported.
South Africa's foreign affairs department confirmed Mthethwa's death, adding that the circumstances were under investigation by the French authorities.
"Ambassador Mthethwa was a distinguished servant of the nation, whose career was marked by dedicated service in critical ministerial portfolios," the foreign affairs department said in a statement, calling his death "a national loss."
A spokesperson for Paris Police declined to comment. A receptionist at the Hyatt said the hotel would not comment.
Mthethwa began his tenure as ambassador in February 2024 and also served as the country's permanent delegate to UNESCO as part of his role.
He had previously held several ministerial positions, including the Sports, Arts, and Culture Ministry, Police Ministry, Safety and Security Ministry, and other roles within the government.
This is a developing report.