Another Australian Tourist’s Heart Removed and Retained After Death in Bali
In a troubling development echoing a recent high-profile case, news.com.au has exclusively learned that another Australian man who passed away in Bali had his heart removed during an autopsy and kept on the Indonesian island, raising questions about the handling of deceased foreigners’ remains.
A Similar Case to Byron Haddow’s Heart Removal
Last month, news.com.au revealed the case of Byron Haddow, a 23-year-old FIFO mining worker from Noosa who died under suspicious circumstances in Bali on May 26, 2025. Following an autopsy at a Balinese hospital, his body was repatriated without his heart. His parents only discovered the organ had been retained after conducting a second autopsy in Australia, sparking a tense campaign to retrieve and confirm the identity of the heart through DNA testing.
Now, a second Australian has come forward with a deeply similar story, involving the death of his brother in Bali and the removal and retention of his heart by the same forensic doctor and hospital.
The Death of Chris Yates Under Mysterious Circumstances
Chris Yates, aged 52, was a yoga instructor and graphic designer who had lived in Bali for 13 years. He died suddenly at his home on February 11, 2023. According to his brother Steve Yates of Melbourne, Chris was healthy and led a lifestyle centered on surfing, yoga, and healthy eating.
Steve described the circumstances of Chris’s death as distressing and suspicious. “One morning after teaching Bikram hot yoga, where the room is heated to 40 degrees, he went home and began complaining about overheating. He jumped into his pool and then phoned a Japanese friend begging for help. She arrived to find him floating face down in the pool with blood coming from his nose and ears,” recounts Steve.
Chris’s friend, known only as Shiho, confirmed finding him in the pool and performing CPR until help arrived. Despite these efforts, paramedics declared Chris dead at the scene.
Investigation and Autopsy Findings
Steve Yates has long suspected foul play, believing his brother was poisoned, noting that Chris had been seen with unusual symptoms including paleness and sweating. Speculation also arose over bruises and lumps on Chris’s body, resembling abrasions found on Byron Haddow’s body, who died months later.
Forensic medicine specialist Dr. Nola Margaret Gunawan, who conducted autopsies on both men at Prof. Ngoerah Hospital (formerly Sanglah General Hospital) in Bali, reported blunt object injuries and high levels of alcohol (ethanal) in both cases. However, toxicology results revealed no indicators of poisoning.
Dr. Gunawan determined Chris died from a heart attack caused by narrowing of the coronary arteries, possibly linked to lifestyle factors such as smoking or poor diet, despite Steve’s assertions that Chris was health-conscious. The blood discharge from Chris’s nose and mouth, she stated, may signify asphyxia rather than physical injury.
Missing Organs and Communication Difficulties
Steve was shocked to discover that Chris’s body was returned to Australia devoid of his heart and several other vital organs, including the liver, kidneys, and stomach. Efforts to trace these organs through Bali’s funeral home led to the eventual return of a heart months later. Unfortunately, testing showed the tissue was chemically treated to the point where genetic analysis was impossible, making it unclear if the organ even belonged to Chris.
Steve described his frustrating attempts to communicate with Indonesian authorities and Dr. Gunawan, stating, “I have sent over a dozen emails about my brother’s heart and received no response. The Australian and Balinese authorities have also remained silent.”
He has made multiple trips to Bali seeking answers but fears reprisals due to the contentious nature of his inquiries.
Dr. Gunawan claims that most of Steve’s emails were mistakenly filtered into her spam folder and auto-deleted, with only the most recent inquiry received.
Calls for Transparency and Accountability
The case highlights significant concerns about the procedures for autopsies on foreign nationals in Bali and the communication protocols with families back home. The similarity to Byron Haddow’s case — a young Australian man whose heart was also removed under suspicious circumstances by the same coroner — adds urgency to calls for transparency.
Australian families devastated by these losses demand clearer answers and cooperative cross-border investigations into the circumstances of these deaths and the treatment of their loved ones’ remains.
As the investigations continue, both Steve Yates and the Haddow family await further forensic results and hope that official agencies will step forward to resolve these distressing mysteries.
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