Indonesia says deceased man was born in December 1870, although his age was never verified

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

A man who was heralded as being the world’s longest living human has died at a claimed age of 146. Saparman Sodimejo, also known as Mbah Ghoto, had an identity card which recorded the date of his birth as December 31, 1870, which was reportedly confirmed by the Indonesian records office. Jamaican woman, 117, is oldest person on Earth Read more

The heavy smoker, who outlived four wives, died this week in his village in Central Java after being taken to hospital on 12 April with deteriorating health. “Since he came back from the hospital, he only ate spoonfuls of porridge and drank very little,” Sodimejo’s grandson Suryanto told the BBC. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Mbah Gotho was believed to be the world’s oldest man with documentation that stated that he was born in 1870. Photograph: Ali Lutfi/EPA

“It only lasted a couple of days. From that moment on to his death, he refused to eat and drink.”

 When asked about the secret of his longevity, Mbah Ghoto told the BBC last year that patience was key and that he had “a long life because I have people that love me looking after me”. Before he died, he just wanted us, his family, to let him go.”



Mbah Ghoto was buried on Monday morning in a local cemetery plot he had bought, which included a gravestone he had procured years before he died.
Sodimejo, an Indonesian man who made an unverified claim to have been born in 1870, which would have made him 146 years old, has died.