'Unbelievable error' as doctor's body found wedged in chimney

A CALIFORNIAN doctor has died after trying to force her way into her boyfriend's home by sliding down the chimney.

Dr Jacquelyn Kotarac, 49, first tried to get into the house with a shovel, then climbed a ladder to the roof last Wednesday night, removed the chimney cap and slid feet first down the flue, Bakersfield police Sergeant Mary DeGeare said.

Dr Kotarac apparently died in the chimney, but her body was not discovered until a house-sitter noticed a stench and fluids coming from the fireplace on Saturday, according to a police statement. The house-sitter and her son investigated with a flashlight and found Dr Kotarac dead, wedged about two feet above the top of the interior fireplace opening.

While she was trying to break in, the man understood to be her boyfriend, William Moodie, 58, left unnoticed from another exit "to avoid a confrontation", authorities said.

"She made an unbelievable error in judgment and nobody understands why, and unfortunately she's passed away," Mr Moodie said "She had her issues - she had her demons - but I never lost my respect for her."

Mr Moodie, who runs an engineering consulting firm, said Kotarac was a superb doctor who often provided service and medication free of charge to her patients. Officials said her office staff reported her missing two days prior when she failed to show up for work.