CCTV footage at building entrance reveals that deceased was unaccompanied
A day after an NRI businessman from Oman died after falling from a skyscraper at Oshiwara in Andheri (W), the police suspect he might have slipped and fallen to his death. Police are, however, unsure of the floor the businessman may have fallen from, of the 28-storey tall, recently constructed building.
The deceased, who was later identified as Phillip Raju, is the CEO of Lama Polyclinic in Muscat, and had arrived in the city two days ago. He was residing at the Kalina residence of his sister’s husband. Police said he wanted to invest in real estate, and was keen on purchasing a flat in Green Height, the same building where he fell to his death.
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According to the Oshiwara police, Raju had visited the sales office located on the 16th floor of the building on Sunday afternoon and was shown a flat on the 27th floor. He had then told the sales manager that he would return in the evening with a Colaba-based financier to finalise the deal.
Raju returned at 5.30 pm - an entry of which is recorded in the visitor’s entry book - but for some reason did not proceed to the sales office. Nor was anybody accompanying him. CCTV footage from the premises reveals that he had entered the building alone. A little later, the building watchman heard a loud thud and immediately rushed to the spot.
“Raju was found lying in a pool of blood in the building’s parking space at 6.20 pm,” said a police officer from Oshiwara police station. The cops did not find any suicide note from the body.
After the incident, officers had speculated that he fell from the 27th floor, as it was the only top floor flat that was open, while all others were locked.
Police said that when they questioned the sales manager, he said Raju never visited him on Sunday evening at the specified time.
“Till now, it’s not clear if he fell accidentally or if there was any foul play. Investigations are on and we are scanning through the available CCTV footage,” said Nasir Pathan, senior inspector at Oshiwara police station.
Police said that they were also probing the possibility of the incident being a murder. “If it was a murder, we are unable to decipher the motive yet. All valuables on his person were intact and he wasn’t carrying any token money or exorbitant amount of cash on him. Besides, the broker and Raju did not know each other before they met on Sunday,” said a police officer.
The police, who have not ruled out any foul play, are also working on a theory which indicates that the deceased may have come too close to the balcony in a bid to catch a view of the city,and may have slipped. They are also tracing his movements after he visited the building in the afternoon, and said that his post-noon activities will be key to unravelling the mystery behind his fall.
Meanwhile, Raju’s children and wife will arrive in the city today, and police will question them to ascertain if he was going through depression.u00a0
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