UK coroner records accidental death verdict in case of man who fell from plane

LONDON – A British coroner has delivered a verdict of accidental death in the case of a stowaway who fell from a plane's undercarriage.

The man's body landed in a street in southwest London in September. Months later he was identified as Jose Matada, 26, of Mozambique.

At an inquest Thursday, police Det. Sgt. Jeremy Allsup said Matada was identified through a SIM card in his pocket. One number was traced to a woman whose family had employed him in South Africa.

Matada may have been trying to reach Britain illegally.

Pathologist Robert Chapman said Matada survived most of the flight from Angola, but might have been killed by hypothermia, lack of oxygen or the plane's landing gear before his body hit the ground.

Coroner Sean Cummings ruled Matada's death an accident.