Facebook employee flags man's "suicidal tendencies," cops avert tragedy
What's the story
A man, in his 20s, was saved from ending his life by Delhi and Mumbai Police after an Irish Facebook employee told about his suicidal tendencies last week, said reports. The man, originally from Delhi, was living in Mumbai and worked as a chef. The employee from the social media giant contacted Delhi Police first, who then apprised their counterparts in the Maharashtra capital.
Details
A Facebook account and problematic videos: How the case progressed
The Facebook employee contacted Delhi Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) (Cyber) Anyesh Roy after seeing the man's worrisome posts, as the number linked with the Facebook account was registered in the National Capital. Thereafter, a police team traced the number and eventually found the man's wife. She had no idea about her husband's "plans," and informed that he used the Facebook account.
Quote
Wife said her husband left for Mumbai after a fight
"She said the account was registered in her number but was being used by her husband who had left for Mumbai two weeks ago after a fight with her. She didn't know where he was staying in Mumbai," DCP (East) Jasmeet Singh told IE.
Case progress
The case was immediately communicated to the Mumbai Police
Following the heads-up about the possibly suicidal man being in Mumbai, Delhi Police immediately notified Rashmi Karandikar, DCP of Cyber Cell in Mumbai. His number was initially switched off, but Karandikar could manage to contact him after repeated attempts. She tried to counsel him over the phone, while the local police were alerted. Ultimately, the police reached his house and averted a tragedy.
Condition
Man was depressed after fight with wife, losing job
According to media reports, the man told police that he was depressed after a fight with his wife. Also, he had lost his job as a cook in a small hotel and feared that he won't be able to support his new-born child. For the last few days, he had been posting several Facebook Live videos saying he wanted to end his life.
Statement
When nothing worked, police asked man's mother to call him
Reportedly, after failing to reach his phone, the police asked his mother to call him on WhatsApp. Though the number got disconnected after one ring, he later called his mother back from another number. "For an hour, one of my officers kept him engaged on a phone call and tried to convince him to not take any extreme step," said Karandikar.
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Tracing man was the biggest challenge for police
"Our biggest challenge was to trace him and our priority was to reach him quickly because we were told he had put out at least four videos of himself preparing to end his life by hanging," Rashmi Karandikar, DCP, Cyber Cell, Mumbai told PTI.