14 DAY TRIAL // Exploding smartphones have become quite a problem for the entire industry, as in some extreme cases, they can lead to injuries suffered by their owners or even death.
This is what happened recently to Malaysian Ministry of Finance-backed Cradle Fund Sdn Bhd CEO Nazrin Hassan, who was killed by what his brother-in-law says was flying shrapnel from a phone that burst into flames.
Specifically, the brother, whose name was not disclosed, says Nazrin was charging his two phones, a BlackBerry and a Huawei, in his bedroom when one of them exploded, setting the room on fire. While the police say the man probably died from smoke inhalation, the brother-in-law says that what actually happened was that debris from the exploded phone hit Nazrin in the head, causing a severe trauma which eventually led to his death.
“He had two phones, one Blackberry and a Huawei. We don't know which one exploded. Who would have thought such an innocuous routine procedure is the reason three young kids will grow up without their father by their side,” a message reportedly posted by the brother-in-law on social media reads.
No word from smartphone makers
The police say there’s actually a bigger chance that the death was caused by the fire in the room, which led to smoke intoxication since Nazrin couldn’t get out of the bedroom. The mattress itself was also set on fire, and the body suffered several burns, though by the looks of things, they weren’t the cause of death.
While it’s not yet known which one of the two phones started the fire which eventually killed the man, neither Huawei nor BlackBerry commented on the incident, though the companies are probably investigating already.
Cradle Fund is a company owned by the Malaysian Ministry of Finance and whose purpose is to offer funding to tech start-ups in the country, including to companies that have already become successful, like Grab and iMoney.