An actor who attended a party at a flat in Whitechapel also attended by Pete Doherty has died after apparently falling from the second floor of the third floor apartment's building. Police at present believe that no third party was involved in the death of thirty year old Cambridge graduate Mark Blanco, but the fact that he got involved in something of a fracas with the Babyshambles star prior to his death has caused some media speculation as to whether Doherty was involved in the incident, and that he may at some point be pulled in for questioning. Some reports suggest that Doherty left before the incident that claimed Blanco's life occurred, others imply that he was there throughout.
A source told The Sun: "Blanco arrived at Paul's a little drunk. He and Pete started to niggle each other. It turned into a full blown argument, with insults being thrown on both sides. The argument got physical and [flat resident Paul Roundhill] stepped in to break it up. He then asked Blanco to leave. A few minutes later some lads came rushing up to say there was a man lying in the street."
The Guardian quote Roundhill as saying: "There were about six of us there including Pete. When Mark arrived he was extremely excited about [a play he was set to appear in]. He couldn't stop talking about it. He had had quite a lot to drink and was aggressively excited. At one point he had Pete pinned to the wall and was waving a rolled up promotional poster for the play at him. Pete looked a bit white and Mark was getting out of order. I dragged him out because he wouldn't leave and was being aggressive."
Magician Jerry Sadowitz, apparently a close friend of Blanco's, has told the Evening Standard: "he should not have been there. He was at the party surrounded by unsavoury characters who took a dislike to him because of his background. He didn't fit in a place like that."
Scotland Yard have confirmed that Blanco died from severe head injuries consistent with a fall, and say that an inquest will be held today.