Frenchman dies in fall off roof in Athens
A 28-year-old Frenchman who died on Wednesday morning after falling from the roof of a building in the neighborhood of Ambelokipi, near central Athens, had jumped out of a police car that had been taking him to the French Embassy for help, police said.
The man was collected by police from the district of Paiania in the morning following complaints by residents in the area that he had been knocking on doors and asking for food and money.
On the way to the embassy, the man jumped out of the patrol car while it had been in motion and ran to a nearby apartment block, police said. He ran up the stairs to the roof and tried to swing across to an adjacent building using an electriciy cable but slipped and fell to the ground, officers said.
Police said they had not handcuffed the man as he was not a detainee and there had been no reason to believe he would try to run off. Officers said they had communicated with the embassy to inform staff of the incident and had planned to take the man there to receive the help he needed.
