Man who died in women’s washroom wall in Calgary mall climbed into vent

CALGARY — A man whose body was found inside a wall in a women’s washroom in a downtown Calgary shopping centre had crawled in on his own.

Police say his death has been ruled accidental.

His body was found on Monday morning by a maintenance worker who was called to fix a toilet that wouldn’t flush on the fourth floor of The Core Shopping Centre.

Investigators say the man entered the women’s washroom Friday evening. It’s believed he climbed on top of a pony wall behind the toilets and removed a vent cover on top of the wall.

Evidence at the scene suggests he then climbed inside the wall where he became stuck and died.

The wall — about two metres high and not attached to the ceiling — is used to hide utilities.

Police say the man’s motivation for crawling inside the wall isn’t known.

They say they are not releasing any further information since foul play was not involved.

It took several hours on Monday to extract the body. People dined in the food court metres away from the washroom, which had a yellow caution ribbon strung across the entrance, and officers could be seen ducking in and out, along with officials from the medical examiner’s office. Several firefighters were there to help remove the body.

A security guard directed women to another washroom a floor below, but the men’s and family washrooms were still accessible.

In the early afternoon, a section of the food court closest to the washroom was cordoned off entirely. About 3 p.m., a body shrouded in a black blanket was wheeled out.

Police said at the time the man’s identity had not been determined.

The Canadian Press