Suicide prevented after Facebook officials alert Bengal cops to post

PTI, Sep 8, 2020, 4:32 PM IST

Kolkata: A man in his late 20s was prevented from committing suicide by the police in West Bengal’s Nadia district on Monday after he posted a status on the social media, a senior Kolkata Police official said.

Facebook authorities had contacted the Kolkata Police cyber cell at around 1.30 am on Monday through an e-mail after noticing a video status posted by him which showed him attempting suicide at his home in Bhimpur, he said.

A quick enquiry was initiated and some phone numbers, which were used to create the man’s Facebook profile were found, the officer said.

“Using social engineering, the location of the person was spotted. We also got the phone number of man’s father, contacted him and briefed him about the situation.

“The father rushed to his son’s room and rescued him. We also alerted the Nadia district police who informed the Bhimpur Police,” he said.

A team of policemen rushed to the man’s house from Bhimpur police station and took him to a nearby hospital where he was treated and was later discharged, the official said.

It was learnt that the young man was suffering from depression for the last three years. He had attempted suicide on four occasions previously, the officer said.