A British widow has said she was forced to bury her husband in an unmarked grave in Cape Verde after he fell ill and died suddenly while on an all-inclusive holiday. Retired forklift driver Colin Timson, 74, from Heighington near Lincoln, began suffering sickness and diarrhoea and was found collapsed by his wife Jacqueline the following morning; he was taken to hospital but died that evening in July 2024. His death, along with that of another tourist, brings the number of Britons who have died on all-inclusive trips to the islands since 2023 to at least 10, raising fresh concerns about the destination.

Cape Verde authorities attributed Mr Timson's death to acute gastroenteritis and digestive bleeding, which they said led to dehydration, severe anaemia and septic shock. His wife Jacqueline, 69, who also fell ill with stomach cramps, said she buried him just three days later because she believed her travel insurance would not cover the cost of repatriating his body, and was told cremation was not an option locally. She said she could not even bring his ashes home, leaving him buried "alone, thousands of miles away from his family". The couple had holidayed in Cape Verde before.