Foul play has not been ruled out in the death of a Smith's man who died outside the Flanagan's Sports Bar on Sunday night, Police said. However, The Royal Gazette understands Jean-Paul Gauthier, 52, died of a heart attack.

The wife of Mr. Gauthier was understandably too upset to speak to the Press yesterday, but did reveal that the cause of death was a heart attack.

Police said Mr. Gauthier was found in an unresponsive state by a staff member of Flanagan's on Front Street at around 12.10 a.m. on Sunday.

"Paramedics attended the scene and attempted to revive the victim, but their efforts were unsuccessful," Police said. "Mr. Gauthier was pronounced dead at the scene at 1.30 a.m. by an on-call physician."

Police said inquiries into Mr. Gauthier's death were underway.

Mr. Gauthier was last seen alive leaving the main bar with another person, Flanagan's general manager Sam Bezant said yesterday.

"He was seen leaving with someone else," Mr. Bezant said. "The worst thing is not knowing. If someone saw something, saw him fall and slip and hit his head or something that would be something, but we don't know."

Mr. Bezant said Mr. Gauthier died outside the sports bar.

"He left the premises upstairs at the main bar," he said. "It looks like there was an attempt to get into the sports bar which was locked and it looks as if he pulled the door open and and broke the safety latch on it.

Mr. Gauthier was still breathing when he was found by the manager in an unresponsive state, he said.

"He was breathing and his eyes were moving a bit and an ambulance was called," he said. "The ambulance came and they put defibrillators on him to try and bring him back. But when I arrived they had a sheet on him.

Mr. Bezant said he spoke to one of his bartenders who knew Mr. Gauthier as a "fairly regular customer".

"The manager had just spoken to the guy, he was a little tipsy but that's all," he said. "He did not drink more than a normal person having a drinking session. He had four or five drinks, paid his tab and off he went. He was not belligerent or anything with anyone or told to get cracking."

The sports bar at Flanagan's was closed this Sunday, he said.

Forensics Police took pictures of a small pool of blood that had collected around Mr. Gauthier's head, he said.

"They assumed it happened when he hit the ground," he said. "But he might have had a heart attack, then fallen down."