The Paraguayan prosecutor's office said on Monday that it was "not ruling out any hypothesis" on the causes of death of a 43-year-old Frenchman, whose body was found in the first week of January in the capital Asuncion.
The body of Florian Géraud, a videographer by profession, was found hanged in an abandoned house in Asuncion three days after he disappeared late on New Year's Eve, according to police and prosecutors.
His disappearance had been reported to the police by his Paraguayan host, with whom he had been staying since arriving in Paraguay in mid-December. The Frenchman had finished the evening alone, then reportedly went out into Asuncion, his phone showing a final connection at 04:44 am.
According to the prosecutor's office, his death was "the result of mechanical asphyxiation", a priori consistent with the hypothesis of hanging. And the deputy head of homicides, Superintendent David Delgado, said the body "showed no signs of previous violence," nor did the site where the body was found, which was more than five kilometers away from his home.
Autopsy results still awaited
The prosecutor's office told AFP on Monday that the investigation "does not exclude any hypothesis", including in response to a specific question about the hypothesis of a homicide.
The full result of the autopsy "is not yet available. This could take up to 45 days. Data extraction from the phone and other procedures are still ongoing. The investigation is continuing," said prosecutor Carla Rojas.
In recent days, the Paraguayan and French press have relayed the doubts expressed by Florian Géraud's family about the hypothesis of a suicide, and their intention to refer the matter to the French courts.