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14-year-old girl, 21-year-old man jump to their deaths from building roof

30 Comments

A 14-year-old girl and a man in his 20s jumped to their deaths from the roof of an apartment building in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on Thursday.

According to police, a witness saw the girl jump first from the roof of the 9-story building, followed by the man a few seconds later, at around 10 a.m., Sankei Shimbun reported. The two were taken to hospital where they were pronounced dead.

Police found bags belonging to the pair on the roof. In the girl's bag was her smartphone which contained a message in which she implied she wanted to commit suicide.

Police are investigating the relationship between the girl, who lived in Sakai, and the man, who was a company employee from Habikino.

The building is about 200 meters from Sakai Station on the JR Hanwa line.

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30 Comments
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Mental health needs to be taken far more seriously in Japan and the US. Ultimately, these two are responsible for what they chose to do, but maybe they could have been helped.

17 ( +18 / -1 )

This is so sad, but angering too - that they couldn't persuade each other to stay alive. So much for sharing problems. A distressing story.

10 ( +10 / -0 )

Mental health needs to be taken far more seriously in Japan and the US.

Agreed, but mental health is a topic of taboo in Japan and is ignored. A good start would be to have more access to counseling in schools.

10 ( +11 / -1 )

As for this 21 year old "man", he is where he deserves to be...

We know absolutely nothing to judge this man.

9 ( +14 / -5 )

Sounds like a suicide pact, met on the internet sort of deal, at least I really hope so. Government needs to improve the lives of people and children not trying to investigate suicide notes and question people.

7 ( +11 / -4 )

When dying becomes more appealing than living, this indicates that something must be seriously wrong with the society as a whole. Has the present lifestyle in Japan cause people to lose the meaning of living in Japan? And what happened to the bond of the family, or the care and encouragement among loved ones in Japan? Is it non-existent?

6 ( +7 / -1 )

So sad! Young hearts should not leave the world like this. We must try to know the hearts of young people.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

21 years-old is hardly a "grown man" in Japan ... in some parts of the world where life is hard, yes, but not Japan ... Aside from that, neuroscience now tells us that cognitive development continues through one's 20's ...

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Perhaps he was trying to convince her not to do it and she chose to ignore his pleas; then when he saw her jump he figured that such a tragedy made him want to follow her. We really don't know the answer based on this minimal information.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Did she Jump, or was she pushed ? Were they on drugs ?

I saw a video of someone in China falling from the 8th floor and bouncing off / through a Glass doorway canopy below... wasn't pretty.

Feel sorry for the Parents, 15 & 22 years of their lives gone, for what ?

1 ( +3 / -2 )

FYI, Suicide rates in Japan are much higher for males then females.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Everyone has thought of suicide at least once in their life. I do not judge. They obviously were not in the correct mental state of mind.

I also stand with the church on this one...

The official Catechism of the Catholic Church indicated that the person who committed suicide may not always be fully right in their mind; and thus not one-hundred-percent morally culpable: "Grave psychological disturbances, anguish, or grave fear of hardship, suffering, or torture can diminish the responsibility of ...

This article would have been better if there was a suicide hotline number for those living in Japan.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

@commanteer

spot on.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Commanteer:

If the man would've saved her, I'm sure people would have judged him as a gross pedo who deserves to be executed. He just can't win.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

He was already a few bad choices past winning anything. He could have at least given her a chance.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

We don't know anything yet about their situation at all. I will never judge anyone ever who successfully committed suicide without full information of him/her. Have you lost any of your loved one by suicide? How dare you dishonor someone who just lost his life by calling them coward or agitator?

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Have you lost any of your loved one by suicide? How dare you dishonor someone who just lost his life by calling them coward or agitator?

I have, so you can stop whining. Committing suicide is one of the cruelest things a parent can do to a child. If fewer people found "honor" is suicide as you seem to, it might happen less. Every situation is different, but this conference of sainthood you automatically bestow on people who kill themselves is obviously not something you have thought through.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I don't see any honor in suicide, but I also don't see dishonor in it. Everyone should have the right to live and die as they wish.

This is a sad story, and it's really sad that they committed suicide together. But to blame it on the 21 year old is to expect that he was in a proper state of mind to be making rational decisions. The fact that he killed himself shows that he probably wasn't in a rational state of mind. So I find it hard to condemn him, rather I pity the two of them together that their short lives got to a point where they thought it was better to be non-existent than to exist. Life is beautiful, full of exciting adventures, tastes, sights, and all sorts of experiences. Unfortunately these two never got exposed to enough of these experiences to the point that interest in experiencing them in the future overpowered their current feeling of not wanting to experience anything ever again. So sad.

Rest in peace to the both of them. At least their current turmoil is over.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

21 years-old is hardly a "grown man" in Japan ... 

Point taken.

But to blame it on the 21 year old is to expect that he was in a proper state of mind to be making rational decisions. The fact that he killed himself shows that he probably wasn't in a rational state of mind. 

That excuse can be extended to just about anyone who commits a heinous crime. If he had murdered the girl, for example. What he did was something short of murder, but pretty far from proper. I doubt the girl's parents are feeling very sorry for him.

In most jurisdictions, if he somehow survived the jump, he could be arrested and put on trial for assisting in the 14 year old's death.

This is not a discussion about suicide in general, because each case is different. But if this guy thought life had no meaning, it's ironic that he ignored the one thing that could have given it great meaning. By helping the girl live.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

OSAKA

> A 14-year-old girl and a man in his 20s jumped to their deaths from the roof of an apartment building in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on Thursday.

Isnt this the third older guy younger woman, doing this in the last few months - it seems strange the girl is about to enter her prime years while the guy is in his prime years.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Give me_abreak:

You kinda mentioned some of the reasons for suicide in your post and then said there was no reason. Sacrificing oneself so that your family can be fed and live on was once seen as moral. Sacrificing oneself for facing dishonour was treated the same way in many cultures (some allowing one to kill oneself in prison privately or to be executed publically with shame).

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

I in no way could think about what I might want going on in my mind as it happens.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

All those down votes? Readers here seem to have the attitude that people who kill themselves have achieved some kind of sainthood. We have to talk about them in nice, whispery tones and only say nice things about them - the poor souls. What is that? A kind of survivor's guilt?

I feel sorry for the girl, because she was just a kid who hooked up with the wrong person. I feel sorry for her parents, family and friends, who will now carry this pain with them the rest of their lives. The emotional wound will never completely heal.

But the grown man. I know nothing of his circumstances except that he was the last possible person who could have saved this girl. And he didn't - apparently by choice.

I am sure he had good excuses, and his story may have been a tear-jerker. But the fact remains he took a young girl with him. I can see contemplating suicide, I have myself. But I never for a second thought to take someone else with me, much less a child.

-3 ( +4 / -7 )

I bet he convinced her to do it because "no one would understand our love now we can always be together" Romeo and Juliet kinda BS

-6 ( +5 / -11 )

Meanwhile while there still people around the world are fighting to survive against poverty, war, hunger and sickness. There is nothing heroic in committing suicide, it's an act of cowardness. Young generation throughout the world must be taught to love oneself despite rejections, problems & depression. Family, school and society must play a huge role here.

-6 ( +1 / -7 )

We know absolutely nothing to judge this man.

No? He helped a 14 year old girl jump to her death.

We know enough.

-6 ( +1 / -7 )

We know absolutely nothing to judge this man.

We know a suicidal 14 year old girl reached out to him. And instead of helping her live, he helped her die. That's more than "nothing."

-8 ( +1 / -9 )

Tragic, the poor girls family.

As for this 21 year old "man", he is where he deserves to be...

-21 ( +4 / -25 )

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