Autopsy report of Yuri Doroshenko

Russian

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Act №2

Medical-Forensic Examination of the body of citizen
Doroshenko Yuri Alekseevich, 21 years old

On March 4, 1959 in accordance with decree of the Prosecutor office of Sverdlovsk region of March 3, 1959 by forensic experts of the regional forensic investigation bureau Comrade V.A. VOZROZHDENNIY and Comrade Y.I. LAPTEV in the presence of the prosecutor of Sverdlovsk region state Counselor in Justice of III class Comrade N.I. KLINOV, criminal prosecutor of regional prosecutor office junior Counselor in Justice Comrade L.N. IVANOV and witnesses S.D. GORDO and K.V. NASKICHEV in the morgue of the central department hospital, PO Box №240 with daylight and sunny weather was performed the autopsy of the body of Y. A. Doroshenko, 21 years old, in order to determine the cause of death and answers to the questions given in the declaration.

Case circumstances

On January 23, 1959 the independent group of hikers consisting of 10 people went across the ski track Ivdel – Mount Otorten. From the 2nd Northern site the group consisted of 9 people. On February 1, 1959 the group started the climb on the mount Otorten and in the evening they put up a tent at the height of 1079 meters.

In the night of February 2 at the unknown circumstances all 9 people died.

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a/ external examination :

The body under examination is a male body of regular build. The body position is as follows: the upper limbs are drawn up at the shoulder joints towards the head and are bent at the elbow joints. The finger joints are also bent. The lower limbs are stretched. The head is turned to the left.

The body was found with the following clothes on it: a short-sleeved blue and red checkered shirt with two two-button patch pockets and with all six buttons buttoned up, a sleeveless light-green knitted vest, blue sateen pants and briefs, and blue knitted long underwear with two buttons buttoned up. In the middle third of the thigh, on the inner thigh to the left and on the front thigh to the right the long underwear is torn: there is a 22 x 23 cm fabric tear on the right and another 13 x 13 cm fabric tear on the left. On the left foot, there are two pairs of light-brown knitted socks torn in the back of the foot and in the ankle joint and a white woolen sock with a reinforced heel; on a white sock there is a 2 x 5 cm dark-brown burnt area in the forefoot around the toe. On the right foot, there are the remains of the cotton sock with an elastic band. This sock is the same color as the one on the left foot. There is also a white woolen sock. On the inside of the pants, there is an identification tag reading 5П1513.

The length of the body is 180 cm. The body has a good nutritional status and well-developed muscle groups. Crimson purple post-mortem spots are located on the back of the neck, torso and extremities. Rigor mortis has resolved in the muscle groups of the joints. There is dark 6-cm-long chestnut hair on the head, cut in a crew-cut style. In the temporoparietal and occipital zones, there is an area where the ends of the hair are burnt, the hair is dirty with moss remains and fir needles, the skin of the face is brown-purple color, the contour of the face is smoothed. The eyebrows are dark chestnut and thick, the eyes are closed, the corneas are cloudy, the irises

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are brown, the pupils are enlarged, and the eyelid mucosa is pale pink. The nasal ridge is straight. Around the nasal ridge, the nasal tip and the upper lip, there are clotted blood traces. The upper lip is swollen. Around the vermilion border of the upper lip, there is a 1.5 x 2 cm dark red hemorrhage. The mouth is slightly opened. The teeth are white and even. The mucous membrane of the gums and the vestibule of the mouth is pale red. The tongue is in the oral cavity behind the teeth. Around the right cheek, the soft tissue is covered with a layer of foamy grey fluid. Grey fluid traces are also visible around the opening of the mouth. The auricles are oval in shape and bluish red in color. Around the tragus and the lobule of the right auricle, there is a 6 x 1.5 cm thick brown red area. On the left auricle around the tragus, there is a similar 4 x 1 cm brown red parchmentlike area. The auricles are bright red from the inside. The neck xxxxx is without any distinctive features. On the inner arms and forearms of both upper limbs, the venous pattern is well-defined. Soft tissues of the upper limbs are bluish red. On the inner right arm, in the middle third, there are two 2 x 1.5 cm irregular-shaped brown red parchment-like abrasions without hemorrhages in the adjacent tissue. In the area of these abrasions, two linear incisions are made. By the anterior margin of the right axillary line, there is a 2 x 1.5 cm dark red skin abrasion area. On the front of the right arm, there are small brown red scab-like abrasions without hemorrhages in the adjacent tissues. In the upper third of the right forearm, there are 4 x 1 cm, 2.5 x 1.5 cm and 5 x 0.5 cm stripe-shaped brown red abrasions. There are also small abrasions in the lower third of the right forearm. On the back of the right hand, there is swelling of the soft tissue and small abrasions. On the back of the hand, specifically on the second metacarpal bone, there is a 2 x 1.5 cm brown-red abrasion with hemorrhaging into the adjacent tissue. The soft tissue of the hand

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and fingers, especially the distal phalanges, are dark purple. On the inner left arm, in the lower third, there are 3 x 0.5 , 1.5 x 0.7 and 1 x 1.5 cm brown red abrasions. On the sides of the left elbow joint, there are small brown-red grazes as well as 2 x 3 cm abrasions of the same color with the parallel stripe-shaped sliding traces. On the inner left forearm, between the middle third and the lower third, there is a 0.6 x 0.5 cm irregular-shaped oval skin wound. The edges of the wound are slightly pressed down and covered with clotted blood. An incision was made around this wound, and hemorrhaging in the adjacent soft tissues was found. The soft tissue in the back of the left hand is slightly swollen and brown-red in color. The distal phalanges of the fingers are dark purple. The thoracic cage is cylindrical in shape. The abdomen is located slightly lower than the thoracic cage. In the iliac area, there is an 8 cm linear whitish scar. The external genital organs are properly formed. In the area of the glans penis and foreskin, the soft tissue is bright red. The openings of the anus and urethra are clean. The muscle groups of the lower limbs are well-developed. On the back and inner thighs and shins, the venous pattern is well-defined. On the front shins, in the middle third, there are pale red parchment-like abrasions – 8 x 4 cm on the left shin and 5 x 1.5 cm on the right shin. The soft tissue in the distal phalanges of the toes is dark purple. Examination by touch shows that the skeleton bones and cartilages are intact.

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B/ Internal examination

The skin flaps of the scalp are moist, rich, glossy, and pale red from the inside. The skullcap and skull base bones are intact. The dura mater is bluish and hyperaemic. The pia mater is opaque and swollen. Convolutions and fissures of the brain are smoothed out and flattened. The brain matter is a greenish red jelly-like substance. The grey matter can hardly be distinguished from the white matter. Brain ventricle contours are indistinguishable. The cerebellum matter pattern is poorly distinguished. The base of the brain vessels is regular. The subcutaneous fat of the body is well-developed. The position of the internal organs is normal. The pleural cavities are empty. The pericardium contained about 40 cm³ of amber fluid. The size of the heart is 13 x10 x 6 cm. The cardiac muscle is dark red when sectioned. The left ventricle muscle is 2 cm thick, while the right ventricle muscle is 0.7 cm thick, in the right and left half of the heart was contained up to 270 cm³. liquid dark blood, the hearts of the aorta and pulmonary artery are smooth, thin, shiny, pale red; the coronary arteries are free, the arteries are enlarged, we pass well; inside the aortic surface smooth, clean, the width of the aortic arch above the valves is 8.5 cm. The lungs are bluish reddish color on the surface, palpated, when sectioned the lung tissue is of a dark color, when pressed a large quantity of liquid dark blood and foamy liquid flows from the opening of the incision; the larynx and bronchus lumen is free; mucous esophagus, trachea, bronchus bluish-red color. The hyoid bone is intact. Thyroid gland on the incision of a flock of reddish color. The ventricle contained about

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150 cm³ liquid mucous mass of reddish color, the mucous membrane of the stomach is lilac red, swollen, with well expressed folding; on the upper surface of the folds of the stomach there is a large number of small hemorrhages - spots of Wischnewsky. A sour smell is felt by the sense of smell from the contents of the stomach. The pancreas is in section small-lobed lilac-red. In the lumen of the small intestine contained a mucus mass of reddish color, the mucosa of the intestine of a bluish-red color. In the large intestine, semiformed feces are light-brown in color, the mucosa of the intestine is pale-gray. The spleen is flabby to the touch, the capsule is wrinkled, the size of the spleen is 1 x 7 x 3 cm, the tissue of its dark-cherry color on the incisions, the pulp gives a slight scraping from the surface of the incision. The liver from the surface is smooth, shiny, the liver is 9 x 12 x 10 cm in size, the liver tissue is brownish, full-blooded, the liver tissue is poorly visible, the gall bladder contains up to 30 cm³. Olfactory fluid, buccal velvety buccal mucosa colors. The kidneys from the surface are smooth, shiny, the capsule is easily removed from them, the size of the right kidney is 11 x 6 x 4 cm, the left kidney is 11 x 5 x 3.5 cm, the tissue of the buds is dark-cherry on the cut, the layers of the kidneys are poorly discernible. The layers of the adrenal glands are clearly distinguishable. The bladder contained about 150 cm³ of a cloudy, light yellow liquid; the mucosa of the bladder is pale gray of the color. In the study of internal organs, the presence of alcohol was not detected.

Some organs from the body under examination have been taken for chemical and histological testing to the Regional

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Bureau of Forensic Medicine.

seal

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Conclusion

According to the examination results of the body belonging to Doroshenko Yuri Nikolayevich, aged 21, and considering the circumstances of the case, we believe that the death occurred as the result of low temperature exposure (freezing), which can be proved by the following evidence: meninges oedema, strong hyperaemia in the internal organs, cardiac cavities full of liquid dark blood, petechiae in the gastric mucosa (known as Wischnewsky spots), an excessively full bladder, along with the third and fourth degree frostbite of fingers and toes.

External examination showed damage, such as multiple abrasions and skin wounds caused by a blunt object that could occur as the result of falling or bruising against stones, ice, and other objects.

The injuries mentioned above occurred while alive, during the agonal state, and after death. The injuries mentioned above can be described as slight injuries without damage to health.

This examination of the body gives reasons to state that the last meal was consumed 6 to 8 hours before death. Alcohol was not found during the tests. The death is violent and accidental.

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