A family is in shock after the body of a mother who passed away during a vacation was allegedly returned without her heart.
Beth Martin, hailing from Portsmouth in the UK, embarked on a trip to Turkey on Sunday, April 27, with her husband Luke and their two children.
The New York Post reports that Beth began experiencing illness during the flight, initially attributing it to food poisoning.
Upon arriving in Istanbul, her condition worsened, becoming ‘delirious,’ and she was promptly taken to a hospital in an ambulance.
Luke remained at the hotel with their children while both Beth and Luke’s mothers traveled from the UK to offer their support.
Sadly, the 28-year-old passed away a day after being hospitalized. Her devastated family describes what allegedly unfolded during that time as a nightmare.
On Tuesday, April 29, the family learned that Beth had been moved to an intensive care unit due to ‘concerns with her heart’. They claim they were left uninformed about her condition until Luke was forced to sign a document. Upon later translation, it stated Beth had died around 9am.
The GoFundMe page, established to cover hospital expenses and the repatriation of Beth’s body, reveals the doctor inquired if Beth had ‘any allergies’. It says: “Luke had previously informed the paramedics that Beth was allergic to penicillin when she entered the ambulance.
“Yet, when informed again, hospital staff were surprised to hear this, despite having treated her for several hours.”
The page also alleges that Turkish authorities accused Luke of ‘poisoning’ his wife before he was allowed a brief, one-minute visit with her at the morgue. There, with a translator, he had to carry her body in a bag through the hospital.
Luke stayed in Turkey for an additional two days to accompany his wife’s body back to the UK, where British coroners found her heart was ‘missing’.
The family alleges that the Turkish hospital ‘removed it’ without any explanation or consent, stating: “They have invaded her body and they have TAKEN her heart.
“Her heart. The most cherished part of Beth. The part that paused when she heard her children’s first words. The part that skipped a beat when she said ‘I do’ at her wedding. The part that filled with pride whenever she was with her family.”
The family is now searching for answers regarding what happened, stating they have experienced ‘the deepest level of trauma’.
According to The Daily Mail, the Turkish Ministry of Health has stated Beth passed away due to a ‘cardiac arrest resulting from multiple organ failures’.
The statement elaborated: “The patient was listed as a ‘forensic case’ in hospital records, based on the statement from Martin’s wife suggesting they may have been poisoned by a meal consumed prior to their trip, and initial findings.”
“A preliminary autopsy [without incision] was conducted at the hospital in line with forensic procedures and as requested by his wife.
“Due to current findings, the preliminary autopsy, conducted with the involvement of the Public Prosecutor and the forensic medicine doctor, could not conclusively determine Martin’s cause of death.
“Beth Martin did not undergo any surgical procedures during her hospital stay, and no organs were removed.”
The family is considering if there were overlooked medical issues or if Beth was administered penicillin, to which she was allergic.
An investigation into potential medical negligence has been initiated at the hospital regarding her unexplained death.
Meanwhile, English coroners might take up to six months to conclude what led to her organ failure, as reported by The New York Post.
The GoFundMe page, at the time of writing, has raised £255,520 (approximately $346,076).