A British pensioner plunged to his death from the fifth floor of an apartment block in Thailand this morning.

Frederick Keith Adamson, 89, was found dead lying face down in a pool of blood next to the swimming pool at the Star Beach Condotel in Pattaya at around 6am.

Police arrived at the scene to find the Brit was wearing only his blue underpants and had a bandage around his head.

They cordoned off the area while investigating the death by interviewing the building's receptionist and the nurse who had been looking after Frederick, known to his friends as Fred.

They said that Frederick had been heartbroken since his younger lover left him three years ago.

Security guard Sornsak Sopha, 40, said: 'People staying in the condominium reported to me that someone fell from a building. So I rushed to check and found that the person who had fallen was a foreigner.

'He had died and at first I was very shocked and couldn't do anything. When I gathered my thoughts I called the police to come and investigate.'

Frederick's carer Anansit Suttaso, 57, said the retired Brit had been suffering from a chronic illness that required medical care every evening.

She said: 'He often complained to me that he missed his partner and lover who had been gone for more than three years. But I never thought he would kill himself. I never thought anything like this would happen.'

Police Colonel Thanaphong Phothi, the superintendent of Pattaya City Police Station, said he has ordered officials to investigate.

The policeman said: 'Forensic officers are checking the room and officers and viewing CCTV from the whole area, to collect evidence to conclude the case.

'There are no signs of a struggle or robbery in the deceased man's room, so we assume it was suicide but we must rule out any criminal activity.'

Frederick's body has now been taken to the local hospital for a Post Mortem examination and the British Embassy in Bangkok have been informed.