Dead man 'may have fallen from plane'

Police are liaising with airport authorities

A man found dead in a car park may have fallen from a plane on its way to Heathrow Airport, police have said.

He was found in a Homebase car park in Richmond, south west London, shortly before 0700BST on Thursday.

The man, who was of Mediterranean or Middle Eastern appearance, suffered severe head injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Detectives are investigating the possibility that man was a stowaway hiding inside a plane, and fell as the pilot lowered the landing gear.

A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: "It is only a possibility that the man has fallen from a plane but it is one of a number of lines of inquiry the coroner will be following.

'Suspicious'

"We are currently liasing with the airport authorities as the scene is on the flight path.

The spokeswoman added: "The death is being treated a suspicious at this early stage."

The dead man, thought to be in his 20s or early 30s, has not yet been identified.

Last year two Cuban stowaways fell to their deaths from a plane near Gatwick.

The teenagers were military cadets who wanted a new life in the US, it was reported.

Alberto Esteban Vazquez, 17, and Michael Fonseca, 16, died after stowing away on board a British Airways flight to London at Christmas.