Banker found hanged in luxury London hotel – For more hospitality stories, see what the weekend papers say

Banker found hanged in luxury London hotel An HSBC banker has been found hanged at a five-star hotel, after apparently committing suicide. Christen Schnor, 49, was found by a hotel worker hanging by a belt in the closet of his £500-a-night suite at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower hotel in Knightsbridge, West London. A note was found by his naked body. Mr Schnor worked at the bank's offices at Canary Wharf, East London. He earned a six-figure salary as head of insurance with responsibility for Britain and the Middle East. Scotland Yard said that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the Danish-born banker.
Mr Schnor rented a four-bedroom apartment costing £390-a-day for his wife, Marianne, and two children in Lower Sloane Street near the hotel. It is understood that he was staying at the hotel while building work was being carried out at the apartment.
A spokesman for HSBC said: "Our thoughts are with his family and we will do all we can to help them at this difficult time."
The Sunday Times, 21 December>>

Cream of Mumbai society turn out for Taj Mahal hotel reopening
The Sunday Times, 21 December>> ](http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5378549.ece)

Pub company Globe in crunch talks
The joint owners of Globe Pub Company, property investor Robert Tchenguiz and brewer Scottish & Newcastle, are preparing for crunch negotiations with their lending banks and bondholders amid fears that the company will soon breach its banking covenants. The situation has created tension between R20, Tchenguiz's investment vehicle, and S&N, which together created Globe when they bought 360 pubs from Spirit in 2004 for £350m. The company, which has increased its estate to about 425 tenanted pubs since then, passed its most recent covenant test last month, when it updated on trading. However, performance has since deteriorated to such an extent that its banks, led by Barclays, are expected to propose a debt restructuring. It is thought the value of the group's pubs has fallen sufficiently to dilute the equity of both owners. The tension is believed to have arisen over S&N's management of the estate, which has a number of empty sites, and is performing worse than rivals such as Punch Taverns. R20's absence from the board of directors is a further source of dispute, say City sources.
The Sunday Times, 21 December>>

Mumbai survivors accuse police of causing hotel deaths Survivors of the Mumbai terror attacks have accused police of causing the death of some of those trapped inside the Taj Mahal hotel by telling them it was safe to leave when armed militants were still at large. The fleeing guests were subsequently shot dead.
Dr Prashant Mangeshikar, a leading gynaecologist, had been trapped in the Taj Mahal hotel along with hundreds of other guests as the militants stormed into the 105-year-old building, spraying gunfire. He and scores other barricaded themselves into a room and waited. In the early hours of the following morning, police reached the group and told them it was safe to leave the hotel because four militants had been cornered on a different floor. "I was suspicious that the police were sending these guys down a different route where the terrorists were supposed to be," said Mr Mangeshikar. "I refused to move away and the people who ran ahead of me, 20 or 30 of them, all died."
[The Independent on Sunday, 21 December>>](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/mumbai-terror-survivors-blame-police-for-deaths-1207256.html)

Nando's owner to make move for Clapham House?
Clapham House, which owns Gourmet Burger Kitchen and The Real Greek restaurant chains, firmed 2.3 per cent to 89½p after Dresdner Kleinwort said a bid from rival restaurant operator Capricorn was likely. Capricorn, owners of the Nando's chain, has already amassed a 24.9 per cent stake in Clapham. "Capricorn are experienced investors in the restaurant sector and we have long believed combining two fast casual dining concepts will create substantial value," the broker said.
[The Financial Times, 21 December>>](http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/295f5c36-ce37-11dd-8b30-000077b07658.html)

By Chris Druce

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