Man stops teen’s webcam suicide attempt
Jesse Coltrane of New Jersey had known the California 18-year-old only through MySpace and only for about a month. The two had often discussed music interests, but on Monday night, the teen started talking about suicide.
Coltrane, 21, who runs a modeling and entertainment agency, says he immediately dropped out of an online business meeting and focused on the teen. For seven hours, Coltrane spoke with the teen through instant messenger, email and phone, the Associated Press reported.
Finally, the teen logged off and stopped answering his phone. But Coltrane said that on his webcam, he could see the teen cutting the skin of his arm with a razor blade. Coltrane called police and gave them a first name and a phone number, all that he knew about the teen’s identity. Cops quickly tracked down the young man at his home in Sacramento. He was taken in for a medical evaluation; his family told police they didn’t know about the suicide attempt.
Coltrane said during his conversation with the teen, he kept thinking about the Florida college student who killed himself online last year on a bodybuilding Web site. Some viewers posted insults as Abraham Briggs Jr. overdosed on antidepressants.
