Tributes paid to British Indian hotel manager who was killed in accident

TRIBUTES have been paid to British Indian hotel manager who was killed in a collision at Kensington High Street last week.

Niksan D’Costa, 27, was crossing the road in west London on Thursday (23) night when he was struck by a vehicle.

According to reports, he was pronounced dead at the scene by the pedestrian crossing near TK Maxx. His social media page says that he lives in London and his family is from Goa, India.

A GoFundMe page has been opened to support his family and raised over £5,000 so far.

The Metropolitan Police informed that a man, 25, has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and driving under the influence of a controlled substance. Later, has been released on bail until a later date in May.

Witnesses said that the road was closed following the incident and around 10 police cars descended on the busy London area.

The Evening Standard reported that D’Costa was working as a duty night manager at the Hoxton Hotel Holborn until recently.

“When I started at the hotel he was so nice to me and very supportive. We are in total shock, he was such a lovely guy. Everybody liked him. he was so popular with everyone at the hotel. We are devastated," his former colleague Beth Devine told the newspaper.

Another former colleague, Rodolphe Augusto, described D’Costa as a 'great friend' and 'precious colleague'.

"He was a pure soul, such a lovely person, very helpful and always with a smile on his face. Niksan loved London and he was very focused on the hotel industry, he was a very hard worker and family oriented," Augusto was quoted as saying by the Evening Standard.

The Met said that D’Costa’s next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers.

Police appealed anyone who witnessed the accident or who may have dashcam footage to contact the force.