13 March 2024 , 17:00
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Tributes have been paid to a British man who plunged to his death from a balcony just hours after proposing to his girlfriend.
Stephen Willits suffered traumatic injuries when he fell from the third floor at a Corfu hotel. The 45-year-old - who was 'heavily intoxicated' at the time of the incident - had been sharing the happy news with hotel guests as well as friends and family back in the UK.
An inquest back in the UK ruled that no-one will ever know what caused Stephen to plunge to his death. Stephen, from Uttoxeter, had worked at Alton Towers for the past five years. He managed the vending machines and was affectionately known as ‘Mr Fix-It’. Paying tribute, sister Leslie Willits told StokeonTrentLive: "He was the nicest person ever, not a bad bone in his body. He was the best uncle ever.”
Mr Willits had proposed to his girlfriend just a few hours before the fatal fall (Facebook)It was back in August, 2020 when Stephen and his fiancée had returned to their room at around midnight following a meal and drinks at the bar. Around an hour later Stephen fell to his death when his fiancée was in the toilet. The inquest heard Stephen had 'mild depression'. But he had no history of suicidal thoughts or acute mental health illness.
Staffordshire assistant coroner Daniel Howe said: “Stephen died as a result of falling from height. He seemed to be in good spirits. He had proposed to his girlfriend that day and was happy about it. He made positive comments to family, on Facebook, and to other residents at the hotel. I’m satisfied that he was heavily intoxicated from the toxicology report. Why he approached the balcony, I cannot determine.”
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