Karl Slym, the Managing Director of Tata Motors, fell off the 22nd floor of Hotel Shangri-La on a Sunday morning. The hotel staff found his body on fourth floor.
He was in Bangkok for a company board meeting with his wife. The couple had a bitter fight following which Mrs. Slym stopped talking to her husband, handed him a letter explaining her side and went to sleep. She learnt about her husband's death in the morning when the police knocked on their hotel room door and had to undergo shock treatment. The letter has been found, handwriting verified as Mrs. Slym's.
According to police lieutenant Somyat Boonyakaew, a tidy room and no sign of force or struggle found on the body ruled out the possibility of a murder. The room did not have a balcony but two windows. While the bigger window was sealed, the small window could be opened. The window was too small for a big man like Karl to slip out of it leading to the conclusion that he must've climbed out of it.
As per the autopsy report, his skull was broken. Brain and internal organs severely damaged which were due to the fall from the 22nd floor.
At a time when the auto industry was going through shaky times, Karl Slym was headhunted by Tata Motors to lead the company to a breakthrough. He had previously worked for General Motors and Toyota UK. Friends describe him as a jovial person.
