Lift woman's husband 'distraught'

This is the first picture of the successful young banker crushed to death in a freak accident as she visited a City health club in her lunch hour.

Polish-born fund manager Katarzyna Woja, 32, who for the past five years worked at Invesco investment bank in Finsbury Square, died on Wednesday after becoming trapped as she tried to get out of the lift at the Broadgate Club.

Today as neighbours paid tribute to the "beautiful, funny woman", her distraught husband Nebojsa Dorontic was struggling to come to terms with the loss of his wife of nearly five years, friends said.

Serbian-born Mr Dorontic, a 32-year-old recruitment consultant, is said to be "drained and absolutely distraught" at what had happened to his wife. She is believed to have been trapped by closing lift doors and then crushed as the elevator dropped half a floor, wedging her between it and the shaft.

A friend of the couple, who spoke to Mr Dorontic last night, said: "Nebojsa is absolutely distraught and has not yet come to terms with it. He has got his family with him comforting him, but I don't think it has hit him yet. It will probably sink in later, but for now he is as well as can be expected."

He is understood to be consulting lawyers about possible legal action over the death of his wife, who was believed to earn at least £500,000 a year.

The couple, who met through work in the City and married in London, have no children and have lived in a two-bedroom flat in a block on Hornsey Lane, Highgate, for nearly six years.

Today neighbours there spoke of the woman they knew as "Kasha".

David Batchelor, 42, said: "I am devastated. Kasha was a stunning, lovely girl with a warm heart and kind spirit. She would often have barbecues on the lawn at the back of our block, and invite us round to sample her Polish cooking.

"She had many friends, some of them from work, and was always organising social events. I last saw her last week when she stopped and asked me how I was.

"She always seemed so happy, and she and Nebojsa were such a close, loving couple.

"Their flat is beautiful, with stunning wooden floors, and I would look after it whenever they went back to Eastern Europe for a holiday. Although she is from Poland and he is originally from Serbia, they seemed happy to be in London. You couldn't ask for better neighbours." Another neighbour said: "Kasha had a wicked sense of humour, really dry and funny, but she was also very warm-hearted. I believe she came from Warsaw but they both seemed very happy here and I think they wanted to stay in London.

"She had a great fondness for chocolate, and was often talking about a new chocolate shop she had found which made specially good chocolate. But she was also quite into fitness, and had a smashing figure."

Ms Woja had been a high-flying stock market analyst with Invesco, the global fund management group specialising in pensions and ISAs. Her first job in London had been with Austrian-based giant RZB Bank. A colleague who worked there with her for six years said today: "She was bubbly and bright. She started as a pharmaceutical analyst and she had a real grasp of her subject. News of her death is horrendous."

She moved to Invesco five years ago where she worked as an analyst and portfolio manager, selecting the companies and funds where she would place the money entrusted to Invesco by pension funds.

Colleagues at the investment bank said she was a popular and successful-businesswoman who was well known to all who worked there.

An email was circulated to staff yesterday morning telling them of Ms Woja's death, leaving many staff in tears.

One said: "There has been a very sombre atmosphere in the office - she was very successful in the company and everyone who knew her liked her. That was the kind of person she was."

Secretary Maria Nicolaidou, 52, said: "She was a really lovely girl, I am still in shock. No one can believe what has happened."

An inquest into Ms Woja's death will be opened today.