Angad Paul death: Tributes paid to Caparo boss after 'tragic loss'
Tributes have been paid to Angad Paul, who died in a fall from his penthouse home just two weeks after his family's business Caparo was forced into administration.
Mr Paul, aged 45, ran global conglomerate Caparo Industries, which was founded by his father, Lord Swarj Paul – chancellor of Wolverhampton University – in 1968. The company is now on the brink of collapse amid the steel industry crisis.
He was pronounced dead after police were called to the family's suite of 10 luxury apartments in Portland Place, London, at 11am on Sunday.
His body was recovered by fire crews from a ledge at the rear of the block. He had suffered catastrophic injuries. His death is not being treated as suspicious.
Caparo went into administration last month, leading to the loss of 323 jobs in the Black Country as plants in Darlaston, Dudley and West Bromwich were shut down.
Plants in Cradley Heath and Oldbury also saw redundancies, while bases in Hartlepool and Wales also closed. A further 1,200 jobs still hang in the balance.
Friends of the family and politicians paid their respects as news of the tragedy spread.
President of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, Ninder Johal, sits alongside Lord Paul as a board member at the University of Wolverhampton.
He said: "This is terrible news. Very sad, particularly in the context of what is going on economically within the steel industry and the effects on Caparo.
"Obviously the business has been very important for the Black Country. We don't know exactly what has happened but I understand the death is not being treated as suspicious.
"I know Lord Paul will be devastated. I wish the family well at this difficult time."
A statement from the University of Wolverhampton, where Lord Paul has been chancellor since 1999, read: "The university would like to express its sincere condolences to the family of its chancellor, Lord Swraj Paul, following the death of his son Angad on Sunday.
"We recognise this will be an extremely difficult time for all of the family and our thoughts are with them."
Pat McFadden, MP for Wolverhampton South East, said: "I am saddened to hear this tragic news. My thoughts go out to Lord Paul and his family at this time."
Former Wolverhampton South West MP Paul Uppal said: "The family will be going through a very tough time and my heart goes out to them. This is a tragic loss."
Wolverhampton North East MP Emma Reynolds said she was shocked and saddened to hear of Mr Paul's death.
"It's tragic news," she said. "I will be writing to Lord Paul to convey my condolences. My heart goes out to the family."
Earlier this year he made a £1m gift to the university on behalf of The Ambika Paul Foundation, a charitable trust he set up in memory of his daughter who died from cancer as a youngster.
Lord Paul started Caparo with a £5,000 bank loan following her death in 1968, and the family is now ranked 47th in the 2015 Sunday Times Rich List, with an estimated £2.2 billion fortune.
He became a life peer in 1996 under Sir John Major but retained strong ties to the Labour Party, including donating £500,000 to Gordon Brown's leadership bid.
Angad Paul was the youngest of his three sons. He married 40-year-old lawyer Michelle Bonn in 2005 and lived in the apartment complex with his parents and 57-year-old twin brothers Ambar and Akash.
Lord Paul passed on ownership to Mr Paul in 1996 and under his leadership the company branched out into film, design and supercars and expanded its empire across Europe, the United States and India.
He was listed as the executive producer on many of Guy Ritchie's films including Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch.
Administrators PwC are considering whether the ventures contributed to the firm's collapse.
