Businesswoman who fell to her death from rooftop restaurant Coq d’Argent is third since 2007

A businesswoman who fell to her death from rooftop City restaurant Coq d'Argent has become the third person to do so since 2007.

Eyewitness said the smartly dressed Asian woman, believed to be in her 30s, took a sip of wine before placing her handbag on the floor and falling from the busy restaurant, landing in front of commuters outside Bank station.

Passers-by and paramedics tried to revive her following the incident but she was pronounced dead at the scene.

David Loewie, managing director of D&D London which owns Coq d'Argent, said: "It is a very sad case, but we cannot comment further as a police investigation is under way."

A diner at the restaurant told the Evening Standard: "The place was packed. There must have been 100 people. Everyone was just doing their usual, drinking and talking loudly. She must have walked to the corner and just jumped.

"All of a sudden the restaurant went quiet and a staff member said we had to leave. It was extremely eerie. I looked over and there was a floral print bag on the corner. She must have jumped from there."

It is the third death to have occurred at the restaurant, which sits at the top of a building used by the firm Aviva Investments.

Stockbroker Anjool Malde jumped to his death holding a glass of champagne after he was suspended from his job at Deutsche Bank in 2009, and in May 2007 city worker Richard Ford died after throwing himself off the building and landing on top of a bus.

A City of London Police spokesman said: "At approximately 18.30 a woman was seen to fall from a building in Poultry. She was pronounced dead at the scene."

By Janie Manzoori-Stamford

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