In the Drexler case

Everything that is examined during an autopsy

(Bild: Wenzel Markus/Markus Wenzel)

Today, Monday, the body of double murderer Roland Drexler will be forensically examined. It is hoped that this will allow important conclusions to be drawn about the time of death. But how does an autopsy actually work? The "Krone" summarizes the most important key points.

A forensic autopsy is ordered by the public prosecutor's office and carried out by a forensic pathologist. The aim is to establish the cause of death and to determine whether there was any third-party involvement, for example in a murder case. In this case, the cause of death should be clear.

"But this also needs to be established beyond doubt. You want to play it safe so that it is not said later that a third person could have been involved," says Ulrike Breiteneder from the Linz public prosecutor's office.

Found dead in the forest
In the case of Roland Drexler, it is hoped that the autopsy will provide information about the time of death. It is known that the body of the double murderer was found by emergency services in a forest on Saturday afternoon, but the 56-year-old had been on the run since Monday. It is therefore interesting for the investigators to know when Roland Drexler died. This may make it easier and quicker to reconstruct the days after the crime.

External and internal examination
The autopsy procedure is always the same. The autopsy consists of an external examination and an internal post-mortem examination. The autopsy begins with the external examination, during which the doctor examines the undressed body for features. The focus is on abnormalities such as discoloration, external injuries and effusions on the corpse. In addition, general information such as height, weight and nutritional status is collected - in this case, the last two points in particular would allow conclusions to be drawn about Roland Drexler's last days.

Important indicators in this case would be rigor mortis, death marks and the core body temperature of the corpse in comparison with the outside temperatures at the site where the body was found. In any case, the time of death is already determined during the external examination of the corpse.

Organs are examined
Internal findings are only helpful if the person to be examined has been dead for some time. The internal post-mortem examination involves opening the corpse and anatomical dissection, i.e. the removal of organs. These are then examined for deviations from the norm.

After the autopsy, the organs are placed back into the body. In order to preserve the normal shape of the human body, the pathologist or forensic pathologist fills any cavities with cellulose and stitches up any open areas. The body is then washed and prepared for burial.