Medical examiner completes preliminary autopsy, but Markoff's cause of death still unknown

By John R. Ellement and Maria Cramer, Globe Staff

The state medical examiner's office today completed a preliminary autopsy on Philip Markoff following his apparent suicide at the Nashua Street Jail Sunday morning, but no cause of death has yet been established, according to Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley's office.

In a brief statement, Conley's office said this afternoon that more medical forensic testing must be performed before reaching a conclusion on how, and what, killed the man accused of murdering a woman he met through an ad on the Craigslist website.

"A preliminary autopsy has been conducted, but the medical examiner has withheld cause of death pending additional specialized testing,'' according to Conley's office. Prosecutors declined further comment.

Earlier today, an official described what Boston Emergency Medical Services EMTs found when they arrived at the Nashua Street Jail on Sunday morning. Markoff was bleeding from wounds to his neck and ankles when they first saw him inside his cell, a spokeswoman for Boston Emergency Medical Services said.

Jennifer Mehigan said EMTs were dispatched to the Boston jail at 10:09 a.m. for a report of an "unconscious male," which is a priority one call.

When the two EMTs arrived at the five minutes later, they found the patient on the floor, with wounds to his neck and both ankles, Mehigan said. Mehigan said she could not specify the types of wounds Markoff had.