FBI officials have released a 10-page file containing letters from the public, pleading for the death of Kurt Cobain, the Nirvana frontman, to be investigated further.
The three correspondence—dated 1997, 2003 and 2006—cite speculative TV documentaries and books on the death of the singer, who died by suicide at the age 27, on April 5, 1994.
One letter—sent to the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., and postmarked November 20, 2006—claimed police were too hasty in closing the investigation.
"This bothers me the most because his killer is still out there and now, because of the haste of the police department, has the chance to claim other victims," it read.
It featured numerous typos and what appeared to be hand-drawn pictures of carnations.
A 2003 letter to the FBI's division in Seattle, where Nirvana played a major part in the grunge scene that revolutionized alternative culture of the early '90s, called for "a reexamination of Mr. Cobain's death."
"Millions of fans around the world would like to see the inconsistencies surrounding the death cleared up for once and for all," it read. "It is sad to think that an injustice of this nature can be allowed in the United States."
A separate letter to Seattle police's murder unit in 1997, cites claims made by private investigator Tom Grant, who was hired by Cobain's wife, the then-Hole singer Courtney Love, after Cobain went missing around the time of his death.
Grant released his own documentary in 2015 on Cobain's death.
The release also included the FBI officials responses to the later correspondence, with officials pointing out that most death investigations generally fall within the jurisdiction of local or state law enforcement.
"Based on the information you provided, we are unable to identify any violation of federal law within the investigative jurisdiction of the FBI," the two responses read.
The file on Cobain was released last month to "The Vault," the FBI's Freedom of Information Act library. It came without prior public notice and nearly 27 years after the singer's death.
Police photographs showing the scene of Cobain's death, meanwhile, are never expected to be made public following a 2015 court ruling that was upheld in 2018.
Cobain's widow, Love, and the couple's daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, won their battle to prevent the "graphic and disturbing" photographs from being released following an appeal by journalist Richard Lee.
Cobain formed Nirvana in 1987 in Aberdeen, Washington, with bassist Krist Novoselic. The band released their debut album Bleach in 1989, with drummer Chad Channing.
In 1990, future Foo Fighter Dave Grohl joined the band on drums before recording their mainstream breakthrough Nevermind. The album, which featured classics "In Bloom," "Come as You Are," and their signature song "Smells Like Teen Spirit," launched the group to superstardom.
The band's third album In Utero was released in September 1993, which featured the hits "Heart-Shaped Box" and "All Apologies." In November of that same year, Nirvana recorded an acoustic set for MTV Unplugged.
Grunge and Nirvana fans marked what would have been Cobain's 53rd birthday in February this year.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
