Frenchman who fell to his death from Hong Kong tower block climbed high-rises around the world
- Police are investigating whether Remi Lucidi, 30, died in Hong Kong while practising extreme sports on Tregunter Tower
- Online photos show Lucidi climbing and standing at the top of high-rise scaffolding and buildings in Dubai, Bulgaria and France in the past year
A Frenchman who fell to his death from a high-rise residential block in Hong Kong’s upscale Mid-Levels area had climbed various towering structures around the world, according to his social media posts.
Police are investigating whether Remi Lucidi, 30, died while practising extreme sports and on Saturday officers visited a Tsim Sha Tsui hostel where he had checked-in on July 17 and was supposed to leave on Sunday, the Post learned.
A source familiar with the case earlier said Lucidi, who used the name “Remi Enigma” on his social media pages, was last seen alive knocking on a penthouse window on the 68th floor of Tregunter Tower at about 7.30pm on Thursday.
A frightened domestic helper in the flat called police for help when she discovered the man at the window.
Lucidi fell off the building on Tregunter Path before officers arrived and was confirmed dead at the scene. Police found his sports camera, which contained videos of extreme sports.
The source said it was possible Lucidi was trapped outside the penthouse while practising extreme sports, and had knocked on the window for help before falling to his death.
A photo posted on the Frenchman’s Instagram page just five days ago was captioned “Hong Kong” and showed a photo taken from Times Square in Causeway Bay. On Saturday, several social media users left “rest in peace” messages in the comments section.
Other online photos showed Lucidi climbing and standing at the top of high-rise scaffolding and buildings in Dubai, Bulgaria and France in the past year.
One video from last October showed him climbing France’s tallest chimney and walking around the edge of the 300-metre-high structure without a harness.
The Post has contacted the French consulate for comment.
Several employees of the Ashoka Hostel in Chungking Mansions in Tsim Sha Tsui confirmed Lucidi had stayed there.
Hostel owner Gurjit Kaur told the Post that Lucidi kept to himself, but was a “friendly and humble guy” when they spoke.
“He was healthy and fit and happy faced,” she said on Saturday. “I feel very sad.”
Kaur said she saw Lucidi twice on Thursday, once when he asked for housekeeping to clean his room around noon and again around 4pm when she left the hostel.
She said police visited the hostel on Saturday morning to collect his belongings, including a laptop computer.
The source confirmed Lucidi was a tourist staying at the hostel, and police had found his passport there. Lucidi had described himself as a Hong Kong-based photographer.
A night shift worker, who declined to be named, said he had spoken with Lucidi several times, with the Frenchman telling him he was in Hong Kong on holiday.
“He told me he was going to hike a mountain when I asked where he was going. He said he wanted to hike a lot when he was here,” the worker added.
Police said Lucidi arrived at Tregunter Tower soon after 6pm on Thursday and told a security guard he was visiting a friend on the 40th floor. He entered a lift before the guard found out the resident did not know him.
Security camera footage showed Lucidi got out of the lift on the 49th floor and was later spotted on staircases on the top floor.
Security guards also found the lock to the top floor had been forced open, but failed to locate him. Lucidi was later found dead on the ground level.
Additional reporting by Clifford Lo
