Petra Ecclestone’s brother-in-law is found dead by his distraught father at parents’ £3million Surrey mansion
- Lee Stunt, 37, was found by his father, Geoffrey, according to reports
- His brother, James, is married to Petra, the daughter of Bernie Ecclestone
- Paramedics went to house in Virginia Water but were unable to revive him
- Post-mortem is taking place and Surrey Police called death 'unexplained'
Petra Ecclestone's brother-in-law Lee Stunt has been found dead at his parents home in Surrey
Petra Ecclestone's brother-in-law has been found dead at his parents' home in Surrey.
Lee Stunt was found by his publishing director father, Geoffrey, according to reports.
The 37-year-old's brother, James, is married to Petra, the daughter of Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone.
He was found at his father's £3.5million mansion on the exclusive Wentworth Estate in Virginia Water, according to The Sun.
Despite police and paramedics being called to the scene, attempts to revive Lee, 37, were unsuccessful.
Friends said Mr Stunt, chief operating officer for metals company Stunt & Co., had been suffering from depression.
One said: 'He had been struggling for some time. But his brother James recently bought him a new Porsche Turbo.'
Surrey Police were last night treating the death as ‘unexplained’, with a post-mortem still due to take place.
Socialite Mrs Stunt is due to inherit half of Mr Ecclestone’s £2.5billion wealth with her sister Tamara.
This week, Mr Ecclestone’s Formula One announced it was being bought by Liberty Media, a US company which invests in sports and entertainment, for $4.4billion (£3.3million).
It was expected however that Mr Ecclestone, 85, will remain chief executive officer of the sport for another three years before stepping down.
But he will have to find a way of working with Chase Carey, an American executive, who takes over promising to change Formula One’s social media and marketing strategy.
The 37-year-old's brother, James, (pictured) is married to Petra, the daughter of Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone
Liberty said it had initially purchased a minority stake of 18.7 per cent for $746 million with a takeover expected to be completed by March 2017.
The deal, including debt owed by Formula One, values the company at $8 billion.
A controversial figure who holds an iron grip over the sport Ecclestone has been credited with transforming Formula One from something run by enthusiasts into one of the world’s richest sports generating £1.4bn sales annually.
Bernie Ecclestone will walk away with about £72 million from the takeover of Formula One by Liberty Media and is also set to take a £10 million salary for the three years he stays in charge. The company’s headquarters will remain at his Princes Gate offices in London.
Teams are welcoming the change, particularly as they will be given the chance to buy a stake in the business, although the terms are not yet known.
Petra, who has three children with her husband James, spent £63m on a French-style mansion in Los Angles, which is bigger than the White House and one of the most expensive ever sold in the US.
Mr Stunt was found at his father's £3.5million mansion on the exclusive Wentworth Estate (pictured) in Virginia Water
The Ecclestone family has been rocked in recent months after Bernie’s mother-in-law Aparecida Schunck was kidnapped in Brazil.
The captors initially demanded £28million in ransom for the release but police later found her in a property west of Sao Paulo, Brazil, tied up but unharmed.
Mr Ecclestone, revealed he ‘never intended to pay’ the ransom, joking that ‘All my friends know that I wouldn’t pay a penny for a mother-in-law. Although I’d say she’s a good mother-in-law.’
After helicopter pilot Jorge Faria was arrested along with two other men, Ecclestone revealed how Faria’s contract was axed in 2014. He said: ‘He’d nicked a helicopter and used it for illegal purposes. So he was fired.’
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