A model who was once crowned the Face of Asia has plunged to her death from a block of flats in Greater Manchester after splitting up with her boyfriend.

Sahar Daftary, 23, from London, fell about 150ft from the 12th storey of the NV Buildings on Salford Quays, just before 10pm on Saturday.

Ms Daftary is understood to have been to the flat to collect her belongings after her relationship broke down with her boyfriend over the summer, reportedly after discovering that he was married. He was arrested and has been bailed.

Ms Daftary, who won the Face of Asia contest in 2007, was also in Manchester to appear on the catwalk at a fashion show at an Indian restaurant on Saturday evening - but cancelled at the last minute saying she was sick. A friend said Ms Daftary had the "world at her feet" but was unhappy after her love-split.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: "Inquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances of the incident."

A resident at the waterfront apartment block, where apartments have sold for up to £800,000, said: "We were out for the evening and when we came back, the police had cordoned off part of the car park. There were a couple of police vans at the front of the building. The police said a young woman had fallen from the 12th floor."

The woman, who did not wish to be named, added: "We moved in two years ago and I haven’t heard of anything like this before. It’s usually very quiet and this building has security on 24 hours a day."

Ms Daftary's friend, Afrah Sami, told the Manchester Evening News: "We are all shocked and devastated. Sahar was very beautiful - she loved life and she was always the centre of the party.

"She met him in Manchester and they were very happy. Then she won the Face of Asia competition and got several big contracts. She seemed to have the world at her feet.

"But she discovered that he was married and she became very unhappy. The stress changed her and she had stopped eating properly.

"When she came up on Saturday she was very distracted and preoccupied with collecting her things from the apartment, but he didn't want to see her."

The newspaper reported that that the boyfriend, who has not been named, rang 999 saying he needed help. He gave a home address and the address in Salford but there was confusion as to where the man was.

Officers rang his mobile but there was no reply. He later rang police to say she was dead. He was interviewed by police over the weekend.

The report quoted friends who said the couple held a ceremony last year, but Ms Daftary later discovered that the man was already married and had a child.

One police source told the newspaper: "Witnesses have said there was no shouting or ranting - just a single scream. It is being looked at as either suicide or a horrible accident."

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