By Yakubu Salisu, Kano
Swiss police have launched an investigation after a woman died in a “suicide pod”.
Several people have been taken into custody and face criminal charges, the authorities announced on Tuesday. The action came after police learned that the Sarco suicide capsule had been used in a forest area the previous day.
Those detained are suspected of “inducement and aiding and abetting suicide,” regional police said in a statement.
The Last Resort, an assisted dying group, told AFP news agency that the person who died in the booth was a 64-year-old woman from the United States. She has not been named.
Swiss authorities secured the capsule and took the body of the deceased for an autopsy, according to police.
First unveiled in 2019, the portable, human-sized, sealed pod allows those wishing to die to press a button. The oxygen inside it is then replaced with nitrogen, causing death by hypoxia. No medical supervision is needed.
Credit: Aljazeera