Homeless asylum seeker starved to death while 'dangling from skylight for six days'
23 February 2025, 14:23 | Updated: 23 February 2025, 14:25
A homeless man starved to death after becoming trapped in a skylight at an empty London property, with his body discovered nearly a week later by an estate agent.
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The lifeless body of Khaled Aribi, 32, an Algerian asylum seeker, was only discovered when a London estate agent entered the property for a viewing nearly a week after he became trapped.
It's thought the asylum seeker had been dead for "some considerable time" before his body was found last summer.
His body had to be identified from fingerprints, according to the coroner.
The inquest heard how the estate agent arrived for a viewing at the Walthamstow property, northeast London, on July 27 2023, when they discovered Mr Aribi dangling from the skylight.
Toxicology results following tests on the asylum seeker's liver found traces of narcotics including cocaine and a psychiatric drug known as Pregabalin.
The Algerian was described as having "no fixed abode", with police concluding he looking for shelter when broke into the Hatherley Road terrace.
Police discovered CCTV footage of Mr Aribi climbing over the property's garden wall six days earlier.
Dr Radcliffe explained that a post-mortem suggested Mr Aribi had been dead "for some considerable time" by the time he was discovered.
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"On the ground around the perimeter of the skylight were small pieces of stone," she said.
"His hand appeared to be trapped between the glass of the skylight and the stone of the ceiling.
"It would seem that he had gained access to the roof of the kitchen with the skylight, had attempted to get into the property via the skylight and, tragically, the skylight had closed on his fingers and he was unable to free himself.
"It was clear that was the source or the place of entry because all other windows and doors were locked."
Mr Aribi suffered from anxiety and depression, with the inquest hearing that he had been under the care of the Camden and Islington mental health team in late 2023.
Ruling Mr Aribi's death as an accident, Dr Radcliffe concluded: "He was an individual seeking asylum in this country and part of his mental health problems related to issues that had arisen in his previous country.
"A post-mortem examination found his death, on the balance of probabilities, had been caused by dehydration, starvation and ketoacidosis - high levels of acid in the blood, caused by malnourishment."
