webfact Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 Australian diplomat dies after falling from New York balcony By Gina Cherelus NEW YORK (Reuters) - An Australian diplomat accidentally fell five floors to his death on Wednesday from the deck of his New York City home during a social gathering with his wife and friends, police and local media said. Julian Simpson, 30, plummeted from a seventh-floor balcony to a second-floor landing shortly after 1 a.m. (0600 GMT) at the 19-story apartment building in the Lower East Side neighbourhood of Manhattan, New York Police Department spokesman Martin Brown said. "He's described as somebody who liked to play games and had sat on the balcony railing and accidentally lost his balance," Brown said. Simpson, a junior diplomat with the Australian Mission to the United Nations, was said to have been playing a "trust game" with an unidentified male house guest, according to the New York Post, citing unidentified police sources. Simpson instructed the man to catch him as he sat on the railing of the balcony and leaned back to prove that he could trust him, the local newspaper reported. But Brown said media reports of a trust game, where a person deliberately falls back and relies on another to catch them, have not been confirmed. The police spokesman added that a toxicology report would determine whether Simpson was under the influence of alcohol at the time of his death. The diplomat was taken to Mount Sinai Beth Israel hospital where he was pronounced dead, the Post reported. Simpson and his wife were out with friends before returning back to his residence to view the Empire State Building, which illuminated rainbow colours in celebration of Australia's same-sex marriage vote, The Post reported. A representative for the Permanent Mission of Australia to the United Nations and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The investigation is ongoing, police said. (Reporting by Gina Cherelus; Additional reporting by Michelle Nichols in New York; editing by Diane Craft) -- © Copyright Reuters 2017-11-16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuckamuck Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 I guess he doesn't trust that guy any more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greatwhitenorth Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 Australia's new gay marriage laws have claimed it's first victim. How many more will die because of the madness? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briggsy Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 Sounds like typical Aussie braggadocio gone wrong. Russian roulette trust games?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuaBS Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 20 minutes ago, webfact said: Simpson, a junior diplomat with the Australian Mission to the United Nations, was said to have been playing a "trust game" with an unidentified male house guest, according to the New York Post, citing unidentified police sources. Simpson instructed the man to catch him as he sat on the railing of the balcony and leaned back to prove that he could trust him, the local newspaper reported. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theguyfromanotherforum Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 It doesn't only happen in Pattaya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreddieRoyle Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 I was expecting to see 95% of the posts calling for an immediate ban on balconys. Good to see that deep down people accept that bad stuff happens, and lashing out in an emotional tizzy calling for banning (insert method death was achieved) is just silly politcs. RIP to the Australian deceased. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kotsak Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 35 minutes ago, theguyfromanotherforum said: It doesn't only happen in Pattaya. Agreed but usually there are no witnesses in Pattaya :> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenKong Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 I always suspected that diplomats can be every bit as stupid as politicians, and it looks like I was right. One more dead idiot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussieroaming Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 37 minutes ago, KittenKong said: I always suspected that diplomats can be every bit as stupid as politicians, and it looks like I was right. One more dead idiot. or his mate could have been a polititian. Never play trust games with a Pollie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboon Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 1 hour ago, KittenKong said: I always suspected that diplomats can be every bit as stupid as politicians, and it looks like I was right. One more dead idiot. Idiot? I bet the Aussies are calling him a legend... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
car720 Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 34 minutes ago, baboon said: Idiot? I bet the Aussies are calling him a legend... No. An Aussie legend would have landed on his feet and called down for another beer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baboon Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 1 minute ago, car720 said: No. An Aussie legend would have landed on his feet and called down for another beer. No, an Aussie legend would have landed on his head and called down for another beer... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overherebc Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 5 minutes ago, car720 said: No. An Aussie legend would have landed on his feet and called down for another beer. More importantly he wouldn't have lost a drop of the one he was holding during the fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 Please stay on topic and be civil. A person has died. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masuk Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 3 hours ago, greatwhitenorth said: Australia's new gay marriage laws have claimed it's first victim. How many more will die because of the madness? What a stupid comment! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UnkleMoooose Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 Shouldn't an Australian have returned back to the balcony after throwing himself off? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saminoz Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 4 hours ago, theguyfromanotherforum said: It doesn't only happen in Pattaya. How many would play such a game with a Pattaya bar girl? Hansum man, truss me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SGD Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 3 hours ago, Scott said: Please stay on topic and be civil. A person has died. Darwin would be proud of this guy for permanently removing himself from the human gene pool. Honourable mention in 2018 Darwin Awards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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