Insurance boss arrested after daughter, 15, dies in fall from luxury Hong Kong tower block

 
Arrest: Nick Cousins, Managing Director at Jardine Lloyd Thompson Hong Kong

A managing director of one of London’s biggest multinationals was arrested today after his teenage daughter fell to her death from her parents’ luxury apartment building in Hong Kong.

Nick Cousins, 57, the MD of London-based Jardine Lloyd Thompson, one of the former British colony’s most prestigious companies, was held along with his Filipino partner on suspicion of ill-treating their two daughters.

The arrests came after police investigating the 15-year-old girl’s death discovered that the two sisters had never gone to school and their births had not been registered.

Mr Cousins’s partner was also being questioned over allegedly over-staying her visa while the businessman was being quizzed over suspicions he helped her to overstay in Hong Kong.

A police source told the South China Morning Post : “The two girls did not go to school since they were born in Hong Kong. Investigations showed they only went to a private tutorial centre to study.”

Mr Cousins has since been released on bail, while the girl’s mother was still being held for questioning, it was reported today.

The girl fell to her death in the early hours on Tuesday morning after reportedly locking herself in a bathroom of the apartment in Hong Kong’s exclusive 3 Repulse Bay Road.

A security guard at the 21-storey block - one of the city’s most prestigious addresses where luxury four-bedroom apartments sell for around £7.5million - called police after hearing a bang.

Initial reports quoted police as saying the girl had been unhappy, though this was not confirmed.

There were reports in the South China Morning Post that she fell as her parents tried to unlock the door of the bathroom in the early hours.

A police spokeswoman said a security guard found the girl lying on the ground at the foot of the apartment block shortly after 1.46am.

Officers and paramedics attended the address but the girl was pronounced dead at the scene.

Mr Cousins’s LinkedIn account states that he has worked for the City based company since September 1994.

The company issued a statement today saying : “We can confirm that our colleague Nick Cousins, the Managing Director of our Hong Kong Office, has suffered the loss of his eldest daughter in tragic circumstances.

“We are giving Nick our full support through this difficult time and he will be on extended compassionate leave until further notice.

“We are aware that the authorities are investigating a number of matters that have come to light in the wake of this tragic event, which has led to some unfortunate media speculation. As these are private matters, it would not be appropriate for us to comment further and we would ask that the family’s privacy is respected.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Nick and his family.”

On its website Jardine Lloyd Thompson says it has had a presence in Hong Kong for more than 150 years.

The 15-year-old girl’s mother is said to have come to Hong Kong from the Philippines to work for Mr Cousins as a domestic helper in around 1990 but later became his cohabitant in 1994, according to the police source.

The reports said that the mother gave birth to her daughters in a private hospital in 1999 and 2000 but initial inquiries showed that the parents had not applied for birth certificates or travel documents.

A current colleague of Cousins at JLT has confirmed he is aware that Cousins have two daughters, but declined to make any further comment.

Samaritans provide support to people in distress. They can be contacted on 08457 90 90 90 or by email: jo@samaritans.org.uk.

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