Ex-Wife of ASOS Founder Speaks Out: "I Didn't Kill Him" Amid Ongoing Investigation into Balcony Tragedy

THE ex-wife of the co-founder of online fashion giant ASOS yesterday made clear: “I didn’t murder him.”

Multi-millionaire when he plunged from the balcony of his 17th floor luxury condo in Thailand.

Quentin Griffiths died in mysterious circumstances in ThailandCredit: Times Newspapers Ltd His ex-wife Ploy Kringsinthanakun has made clear ‘I did not kill him’Credit: Asia Pacific Press Police at the luxury apartment in Thailand where Griffiths plunged to his deathCredit: Asia Pacific Press

His death followed a bitter custody battle with his former wife over their two children and claims by her that he had stolen £500,000 from her company.

But Ploy Kringsinthanakun, 43, has made clear she played no role in his death which came just days before their next court appearance.

She told The Sun: “I had absolutely nothing to do with his death. How could I kill him? How would I know anything about it? I live in Bangkok — I wasn’t in Pattaya.”

Griffiths, who drove a £200,000 sports car, was wearing blue shorts and a white t-shirt when he fell to his death from his apartment at one of Pattaya’s most exclusive blocks, but apparently no shoes.

Thai police say the apartment door was locked from the inside and they have completed a check of CCTV footage and are happy he was the only person in the apartment before he died.

They are treating his death as a suspected suicide but are awaiting the autopsy results before making a final determination.

But a Sun investigation reveals that a series of puzzling questions remain.

A wicker chair, part of a larger patio set, had been pulled next to the waist-high glass surround on the balcony suggesting he used it to climb over, even though the barrier is not that high.

There are hundreds of footprints in the dust on the floor of the balcony, making it impossible to assess how many people might have been present in the time before he fell.

And although no suicide note was found in the apartment according to police, there is an unsealed envelope on the passenger seat of his sports car which has not yet been checked.

Griffiths plunged from the balcony of his 17th floor luxury condoCredit: Asia Pacific Press via ViralPress An unsealed envelope on the passenger seat of his sports car has not been checked by copsCredit: Asia Pacific Press

Cops have not gained access to the McLaren 570S supercar which is parked in the apartment block’s garage so investigators don’t know what, if anything, the envelope contains.

Ploy has made clear she had nothing to do with her ex’s death but does admit it came after years of acrimony between them following a brutal break-up.

The businesswoman, still locked in a legal battle to get access to her son and daughter after Griffiths, 58, won custody, claims they separated when she discovered he was cheating on her.

She said: “We have not been in contact for four years and eight months, since we separated when I discovered he was unfaithful and had another woman.

“We have also been involved in ongoing legal proceedings, and the case is still before the court.

“I only learned about his death when his lawyer called both me and my lawyer to arrange a negotiation regarding the case.

“Of course I am sad about his death, he is the father of my children, so I am worried about them and what they are going through.

“I fought with him so much in the past, but I moved on and just wanted to be treated fairly.

“I only knew about his death from his lawyer. I even searched local Pattaya news to check if it was true and found nothing. I asked his lawyer if he was joking about Quentin being dead.

“I was shocked.

“For almost five years he kept my children away from me. We had no contact, and suddenly I am told he has died.

“I find it very suspicious that there has been no news in Thailand about his death. It makes me question whether someone influential is suppressing the story.

“I have been prevented from seeing my children for nearly five years. I cannot contact them at all. I only recently found out where they are living. I was told that if I tried to see them, I could be reported to the police.

“Why was I blocked from seeing my own children for so long when I carried them, gave birth to them, and am named on their birth certificates?

“The court ordered that the children and I should be allowed contact, but he ignored the court’s order.

“He moved them to a new school, changed their address, and sold the old house without informing me where they were living.

“I do not have the power or money to hire a detective to track down my children. I have an elderly mother to care for and this is beyond my means.

“I want to be able to see my children.”

She claimed that a court had found Griffiths guilty of fraudulently selling land and shares worth £500,000 belonging to her company.

He appealed the sentence and the next court hearing was due to be on Monday (feb 23).

Court papers seen by The Sun show that he was accused of committing “many offences against the law”.

These included “reporting a false message” to police and falsely claiming a land deed was lost.

He was arrested after landing at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport in January last year and was quizzed by the Economic Crime Suppression Bureau.

Griffiths denied all wrongdoing in relation to the claims and insisted every business transaction was done lawfully.

The legal battle between the pair was ongoing when police received a call around 10.30pm on February 9 to say a man had fallen from a balcony in the Elysium apartment block.

When officers arrived at Griffiths’ condo they found two opened bottles of wine and a bottle of water.

A police source said: “Officers arrived at the scene and it was confirmed that Quentin was dead. An ambulance took his body to the hospital for a post-mortem examination.

“The CCTV inside the building was checked. The only person who went into the room was Quentin, so we do not believe there was anything suspicious.”

Griffiths made a fortune after launching ASOS in 2000 with Nick Robertson, the great-grandson of High Street legend Austin Reed.

It grew into a £3billion global phenomenon with the Princess of Wales, Michelle Obama and ex-PM David Cameron’s wife Samantha all wearing its own-label designs.

Former advertising exec Griffiths quit as marketing director after just four years but was still left hugely wealthy.

The married dad-of-three pocketed £15m of shares in 2010 and enjoyed another windfall from a second stock sale in 2013.

Griffiths moved to Thailand shortly after he left ASOS, divorced his first wife and then met and married Ploy, who runs a health supplements firm, and had their kids, now aged 12 and 11.

But their marriage soon hit the rocks, triggering the lengthy legal battle.

Griffiths’ family back in the UK declined to comment.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British national who has died in Thailand and are in contact with the local authorities.”

A spokesperson for Asos said: “We’re saddened to hear about the passing of Quentin, one of our original co-founders.

“He played an important role in Asos’s earliest days and we’re forever grateful for his contribution.

“Our thoughts are with his family and friends.”

Griffiths death followed a bitter custody battle with his former wifeCredit: Instagram The building from which Griffiths plunged to his deathCredit: Not known, clear with picture desk