American multimillionaire found dead in London mansion after argument with wife over airline ticket, inquest told

"Joshua Pack, 51, was co-CEO of the investment giant Fortress - which owns the well known British brands Majestic Wine, Poundstretcher, Punch Pubs and the Curzon cinema chain - and had relocated to London to oversee the firm's regional growth."

"The father-of-four and his wife had had an argument over plane tickets with both threatening to kill themselves, a London court was told. But senior coroner Professor Fiona Wilcox said she could not be sure Pack's death was suicide and said it was more likely an "impulsive' act."

"At the inquest on May 5, a statement was read out from his wife of 28 years. She said they had an argument the evening before his death after "drinking on and off throughout the day." "We were high school sweethearts," the statement said. "Josh was a devout Catholic who worked so hard to support me and the children, the most important thing in his life. But there were tensions, as in any long-term marriage.""

"She described how once, after an argument, Pack had "dramatically" hurled himself off a Swiss hotel balcony into the snow after they argued. "Josh could be impulsive," she said. "We had just moved to London from the States. Both of us were incredibly stressed." "There were a lot of problems with the house and nothing seemed to be working. Josh was excited about his new project at work. I didn't know the details but I knew it was important.""

Joshua Pack, co-CEO of Fortress, was found dead in a locked bedroom of a rented mansion in St John’s Wood, London, on September 29. He had relocated from Dallas, Texas, to oversee regional growth and lead an American fund’s push into Europe. Before his death, he and his wife had an argument about plane tickets, during which both threatened to kill themselves. His wife described long-term marital tensions, stress from moving to London, and past impulsive behavior, including a prior incident after an argument. The senior coroner said she could not be sure the death was suicide and considered an impulsive act more likely.

Read at Irish Independent