The Federal Bureau of Investigation has released an archival file relating to the death of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, 27 years after the rock icon died by suicide. The records, now publicly accessible, contain two letters sent to the Bureau requesting that they reopen the investigation into Cobain’s death in 1994.
One claims that the police involved in the investigation into Cobain’s death were “never very serious in investigating it as a murder,” and says there is “more than enough evidence to reopen the case and change the cause of death from suicide to murder.”
Another, sent in 2003, comes from an individual who believes “a great injustice might have been committed” in Cobain’s case, requesting a “reexamination” of his death.
“Millions of fans around the world would like to see the inconsistencies surrounding the death cleared up once and for all. It is sad to think that an injustice of this nature can be allowed in the United States.”
There are also three letters the FBI sent back to those who requested a reinvestigation into Cobain’s death, explaining that homicide investigations are generally within the jurisdiction of state and local authorities.
“In order for the FBI to initiate an investigation of any complaint we receive, specific facts must be present to indicate that a violation of federal law within our investigative jurisdiction has occurred,” they read.
“Based on the information you provided, we are unable to identify any violation of federal law within the investigative jurisdiction of the FBI. We are, therefore, unable to take any investigative action in this case.”
The file ends with a fax sent to the FBI in 1997 by Cosgrove/Meurer Productions, a production company who helmed the documentary series Unsolved Mysteries, which featured an episode on Cobain the same year.
“At least one investigator, Tom Grant, a Los Angeles based private investigator and former L.A. Country Sheriff’s deputy, is convinced that the official ruling of suicide was a rush to judgement,” it reads.
“The Seattle police are confident they made the correct ruling. They consider the case closed. Tom Grant does not. He believes the investigation should be re-opened and the inconsistencies resolved once and for all.”
You can read the file in full here.
