'Sensible' man who fell from balcony on holiday was 'clumsy', inquest told

24 January 2024 , 17:55

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Mr Milner had been visiting Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam at the time of his death (Image: Getty Images)

A Brit holidaymaker fell to his death from the third floor of a Vietnam guest house while “seriously intoxicated”, an inquest has been told.

Benjamin Milner, from London, was visiting Ho Chi Minh City during his travels to south east Asia when he died in the early hours of November 5, 2022. The 46-year-old was seen by the guest house manager “talking to himself” so she told him to go to his room on the third floor, the inquest in Bournemouth was told.

When a noise was heard from the street outside, the manager realised Mr Milner had fallen and laying on the ground, bleeding. CCTV footage showed him “standing unstable and he fell into the main door of the guest house” when he arrived earlier, coroner Rachael Griffin said.

Callously, Mr Milner's phone and wallet were found to be stolen after his death. Vietnamese authorities concluded there were "no signs" of suspicious circumstances in his death.

A post-mortem back in the UK found Mr Milner had died of multiple injuries from the fall, including multiple factures to the skull. Blood tests also showed he had 278mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood at the time - more than three times the legal UK drink-drive limit and which would have meant “serious intoxication”.

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In a statement read to the inquest, Mr Milner’s sister Amanda said: “Ben was a very sensible young man, very into healthy eating and looking after himself. He was interested in computers and was very knowledgeable in that area.”

She said he “rarely” drank sociably in the UK, though the inquest was told his family described him as a “clumsy drunk”. Ms Milner said on behalf of her family that her brother’s death “left a huge hole in their lives”.

Ms Milner also told of her frustration that the Vietnamese authorities had not provided the CCTV footage mentioned by the guest house manager. Recording a verdict of accidental death, Ms Griffin said: “There is no evidence of any third-party involvement in his death.

“I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that he died as a result of multiple injuries sustained from a fall from height.” She added: “I understand it’s disappointing for the family not to have the exact circumstances of what happened to Ben.”

She continued: “Ben was very much loved and his death has caused great devastation. He was somebody who lived life very much to the full. He enjoyed life and he enjoyed travelling.”

PA agency