Jakarta - A British man fell to his death Monday from a high-rise apartment building in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, a police official said.

Police senior commissioner Choirul Anwar, chief of South Jakarta's police office, said Alexander Smith fell down to the 5th floor from the 21th floor of the Rasuna Apartment building in the Kuningan sub-district of South Jakarta at about 12:30 pm.

Anwar was quoted as saying by detik. com online news portal that Smith, about 30 years old, had been working as a journalist for a company he identified as Asia Work International.

An investigation was underway to determine whether Smith's death was a suicide or the result of foul play, he said.

"We are still compiling more information from witnesses," Anwar said. His body was immediately taken to the RSCM general hospital for an autopsy.

When his body was found at the 5th floor, Smith was clutching his his laptop computer, Anwar said, adding that police would search the laptop to determine if he had written a note before the fall. (dpa)