Surry Hills balcony jump: man impaled after dating app meet

Police are searching for a man who fled an apartment after the 37-year-old he had met on a dating app jumped off the balcony.

NSW police are searching for a man who fled a Surry Hills apartment on Sunday after the 37-year-old man he had met on a dating app jumped off the third storey balcony, impaling his leg on a table.

Surry Hills detectives today released CCTV vision of the man who they believe was the only other person in the apartment at the time and could be a crucial witness to the “life threatening” fall.

Police say the two men had met several hours before the fall on the popular gay hook-up app, Grindr.

The injured man, an American and Swedish national, remains in a medically-induced coma with critical head and spinal injuries.

Eyewitnesses have told police they saw him fall.

“The person hasn’t been pushed, for some reason he has jumped, but we still haven’t been able to establish the reason why,’ Surry Hills Commander, Detective Superintendent Gavin Wood, told The Australian.

Police are searching for a potential witness they believe may have met the victim earlier that day via a dating app.

“The man we are looking is aware he’s gone over and he might be able to tell us the rationale for jumping.”

His family are expected to arrive from the US later today to be at his bedside at Sydney’s St Vincents’ Hospital.

CCTV footage shows a man with a slim build and dark hair dressed in jeans and a T-shirt entering the main front door of the Surry Hills apartment in Brisbane Street then waiting in the foyer to adjust his T-shirt and tidy his hair.

The same man, described by police as being of Middle Eastern or Mediterranean appearance, is later seen walking around the entry area, carrying a bag, before he exits the building.

Supt Wood said people who used dating apps should always remain “situationally aware”.

Police have urged the man in the CCTV footage to come forward.

“Know who you are meeting, where you’re meeting them, what their intentions are and perhaps establish some safeguards beforehand such as providing close friends with those details,” he said.

Police have urged anyone who sees the man to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.