Khashoggi died from chokehold to prevent him from calling for help: Saudi official

A Saudi official has told ABC News that Jamal Khashoggi was killed when he was “placed in a chokehold position” to prevent him from leaving the country’s consulate in Turkey and calling for help.

The latest details in an evolving explanation come 19 days after Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist who had been critical of his country’s current government, disappeared on Oct. 2 after going into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

After Khashoggi was reported missing, the Saudi government initially said Khashoggi had come out of the consulate the same day.

Two weeks later, on this past Friday, the country’s public prosecutor said an initial investigation revealed that discussions between Khashoggi and the individuals who met with him at the consulate led to an argument and a fistfight, which resulted in the journalist’s death, according to the Arabic report in the Saudi Press Agency. (The English version said “brawl,” but the Arabic version said “fistfight.”)

The Saudi official on Sunday told ABC News that Khashoggi’s body was given to a “local cooperator” in Istanbul for disposal. “Investigation into this continues,” the official said.

The whereabouts of Khashoggi’s body remain unknown.

Fifteen Saudis, members of the team sent to Turkey to meet with Khashoggi in the consulate in Istanbul, are among those who have been detained by the Saudi public prosecutor, according to the official.

“All the 15 team members are among those detained,” the official said. “I don’t have the names at this time.”

The official also told ABC News that five Saudi intelligence chiefs who were relieved of their duties in connection to Khashoggi’s death are not currently suspects in the investigation, even though they were “part of the chain of command of the operation” and that “the operational orders … were written in such a way as to contribute to the series of events that led to the tragic death.”

Turkish officials have claimed that a team of 15 Saudi men, including one who was identified by the press as an autopsy doctor, flew to Turkey specifically to kill Khashoggi at the consulate.

Eighteen Saudi citizens were detained by the Saudi government in connection with Khashoggi’s killing, according to Saudi Arabia’s state-run news agency.

Khashoggi had recently been living in the U.S. and served as an opinion columnist for The Washington Post newspaper.