Asylum seeker died of rare bacterial infection

Brisbane doctors have identified the rare bacterial infection that led to the death of an Iranian asylum seeker in the Australian Government's care.

Hamid Khazaei, 24, died in a Brisbane hospital last month after his leg became infected on Manus Island

Lateline can reveal the infection was caused by a bacteria called chromobacterium violaceum, which can aggressively attack internal organs after entering the bloodstream.

The bacteria is found in soil and stagnant water. The infection is rare with only about 200 reported cases in the world since the 1920s.

Mr Khazaei's grief-stricken family laid him to rest at a packed funeral in Iran's capital Tehran last week.

more: Asylum seeker died of rare bacterial infection

Brisbane doctors have identified the rare bacterial infection that led to the death of an Iranian asylum seeker in the Australian Government's care.

Hamid Khazaei, 24, died in a Brisbane hospital last month after his leg became infected on Manus Island

Lateline can reveal the infection was caused by a bacteria called chromobacterium violaceum, which can aggressively attack internal organs after entering the bloodstream.

The bacteria is found in soil and stagnant water. The infection is rare with only about 200 reported cases in the world since the 1920s.

Mr Khazaei's grief-stricken family laid him to rest at a packed funeral in Iran's capital Tehran last week.