'Thief' landing on Madonna's doorstep

Thief fights for his life after plunging six floors... and landing on Madonna's doorstep

A suspected thief was critically ill in hospital last night after plunging 100ft from a block of flats and landing by the back door of Madonna’s £10million home.

The man had been trying to escape police when he burst into the block next to the singer’s London mews home.

He rushed up to the sixth floor and tried to climb out of a window and shimmy down a drainpipe. But he lost his grip and fell into a communal parking area just a few feet from Madonna’s door.

Undercover police officers had chased the man for about a quarter of a mile before he reached the flats. They were in the block’s basement when he fell, as they thought that was where he was hiding.

Madonna, 52, is in London with her new boyfriend, dancer Brahim Zaibat, 24, but it is unclear whether she was at her Marylebone home during the drama on Friday afternoon.

After the man fell, one of her security guards came out of the property to see what had happened.

The man, in his 30s and believed to be from Eastern Europe, was said to be in a critical condition at a Central London hospital last night.

The Metropolitan Police have referred the case to the Independent Police Complaints Commission. It is believed that the IPCC will ask to use footage from Madonna’s CCTV cameras, as they are thought to have captured the horror on film.

The chase started when the man allegedly carried out a theft in Edgware Road, Central London.

A witness said: ‘This man came running past Madonna’s house while being chased by plain-clothed police.

‘He was desperate and suddenly burst into the property next to hers, a block of flats.

‘He landed a few feet from Madonna’s door and her security man came out to see what was going on.
‘Police immediately attended to the man who fell but he was in a very bad condition.”
The head porter at the flats said: ‘There were two staff on duty when a man came in through the front door to reception and asked to use the loo.

Horror: The arrows show the man's 100ft plunge to land by Madonna's back door

‘One member of staff told him that we didn’t have public loos.
As she was speaking to him, a policeman came to the door.
‘She turned to start speaking to the policeman and the man ran off further into the building.
‘We do not have CCTV in the area leading to the flats so the police were unsure where he ran to.
‘They went into the basement, where they thought he had gone, but he had run up to the sixth floor. It is thought that he pushed past a builder who was carrying out refurbishment in one of the sixth-floor flats and gained entry to it that way. He then tried to climb down a drainpipe that went past the window but he fell.’

Police cordoned off the area by Madonna’s home, with forensic officers wearing white overalls and masks working there throughout the night.
A white scene-of-crime tent was placed over the spot where the man fell and powerful security lights from Madonna’s property were used to illuminate the area for officers.
Madonna’s head of security said: ‘We have given the police everything they need. I can’t say if it was CCTV film.
‘I also can’t say if Madonna was here at the time of the accident.’
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: ‘Shortly before the man fell from the building, officers were pursuing a man who had entered the same building.
‘The Directorate of Professional Standards has been informed and the matter has been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.’
A spokesman for Madonna refused to comment.