William Francis Melchert-Dinkel | |
---|---|
Born | July 20, 1962 |
Citizenship | American |
Occupation(s) | Former nurse; currently a truck driver[1] |
Known for | Charged with encouraging the suicides of a person in Britain in 2005, and another person in Canada in 2008, over the internet |
Criminal charge | Assisting suicide (April 23, 2010) |
Spouse | yes |
Children | two daughters[2] |
William Francis Melchert-Dinkel, born July 20, 1962, from Faribault, Minnesota, a licensed nurse from 1991 until February 2009, stands accused of encouraging people to commit suicide while he watched voyeuristically on a webcam.[2][3][4][5][6] He allegedly told these contemplating suicide what methods worked best, that it was OK to commit suicide, that they would be better in heaven, and/or entered into suicide pacts with them.[3][7] He is a married father of two.[8][9][10]
Melchert-Dinkel is charged with two counts of assisting suicide, for allegedly encouraging the suicides of a person in Britain in 2005, and another person in Canada in 2008.[3]
Alleged victims
He allegedly met his victims in internet suicide chat rooms, where he posed as a depressed woman in her 20s.[11][12][13][14] Investigators say he told them he encouraged dozens of people to kill themselves, contacting more than 100 people.[3][6][15]
According to the police, Melchert-Dinkel, admitted to using a number of e-mail addresses to persuade five people to kill themselves.[16] He allegedly admitted using two e-mail addresses, falcongirl507@yahoo.com and li_dao05@yahoo.com, and the alias Cami D, to advise, encourage and create suicide pacts, typically by hanging, with persons on the internet for four to five years.[16][5][13][17][18]
Nadia Kajouj; Canada
He was charged in relation to the suicide of 18-year-old Nadia Kajouji who became depressed after a miscarriage.[19] A student at Ottawa's Carleton University, she jumped from a bridge and was found drowned in Rideau River near the Ottawa school in April 2008.CTV[20][21][22][23][24][25] She had allegedly conversed online with someone posing as a young woman–now alleged to be Melchert-Dinkel–who allegedly suggested that she hang herself (allegedly advising what type of rope to buy, what length and diameter, how to tie the knots, and where to place the noose on her neck), and that she capture her final moments with a webcam so he and others could watch, as part of a joint suicide pact.[26][4][20][22][27][13] St. Paul, Minnesota police said they confirmed that she "had been conversing with Melchert-Dinkel online just prior to her disappearance", including on the day of her disappearance.[28][29][30]
Ottawa police decided not to charge Melchert-Dinkel under the Canadian assisted suicide law.[14]
Mark Drybrough; England
He was also charged in relation to the suicide of 32-year-old Mark Drybrough, a 32-year-old IT technician who in the wake of suffering a nervous breakdown and being depressed hung himself in his Coventry, England home in July 2005, after allegedly chatting for two months with someone allegedly using the aliases Falcongirl and Li Dao.[4][24][24][31][32] He is charged with counseling Drybrough how to kill himself.[24]
Charges
He was charged on April 23, 2010, in a criminal complaint filed in Rice County, Minnesota.[6] He was charged under a rarely used state law with advising, encouraging, or assisting Kajouj and Drybrough in taking their own lives using internet correspondence.[2][33][34] He was ordered to stay off the internet while his criminal case is pending.[35]
While counseling to commit suicide is illegal, laws in North America and Britain have not been successfully used to prosecute anyone for promoting suicide over the internet.[4] If he is found guilty of aiding a suicide under Minnesota law, which provides penalties for anyone who “intentionally advises, encourages, or assists another in taking the other’s own life", punishment can be up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $30,000.[21][7][36][14]
See also
References
- ^ "Man accused in Brampton teen's suicide banned from Internet". thestar.com. May 26, 2010. Retrieved June 30, 2010.
- ^ a b c Complaint
- ^ a b c d Davey, Monica (May 13, 2010). "Online Talk, Suicides and a Thorny Court Case". The New York Times. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c d "Nurse may be linked to multiple suicides, tracker says". The Globe and Mail. April 10, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b "Nurse urged 5 to commit suicide, U.S. police say". The Toronto Star. May 9, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c "William Melchert-Dinkel charged with encouraging suicides, The Sunday Times, April 24, 2010. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b "Teen urged to commit suicide on webcam". The Toronto Star. February 28, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ Niall Firth (March 24, 2010). "The suicide voyeur nurse who 'encouraged people to kill themselves online'". Daily Mail. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ "Cops: Nurse encouraged suicides". MSNBC. October 16, 2009. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "Nurse Is Accused of Using Internet to Encourage Suicides", The New York Times, October 18, 2009
- ^ "Former US nurse charged with aiding suicides via web". BBC News. April 24, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "Internet predator linked to deaths". Sunday Mercury. March 8, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c "'Suicide voyeur' nurse William Melchert-Dinkel allegedly talked people into death online". The Australian. March 22, 2010. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c Greenberg, Lee (February 25, 2010). "Kajouji case goes to U.S. prosecutor". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ "William Melchert-Dinkel". New York Daily News. October 17, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b "Man tells police he coached 5 people to kill themselves". The Globe and Mail. May 9, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ Paul Walsh (October 14, 2009). "Nurse involved in suicide chats loses license". Star Tribune. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "Suicide nurse prowled internet chat rooms". Smh.com.au. October 20, 2009. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "Minnesota Man Assisted Internet Suicide". ABC News. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ a b "Depressed? Maybe you'd better stay off the Web". The Globe and Mail. February 28, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b "Nurse probed in teen's suicide has long disciplinary record". The Toronto Star. February 27, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b "More light shed on suspect in Kajouji death". National Post. February 26, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ "U.S. nurse tied to Canadian student death". UPI. February 27, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c d Emma Stone (March 10, 2009). "Internet ghoul linked to city man's suicide". Coventry Telegraph. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ "Nurse William Melchert-Dinkel had 'suicide fetish,' went online to provoke two people's deaths: cops". New York Daily News. October 17, 2009. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "William Melchert-Dinkel: Minnesota Nurse Suspected Of Encouraging Suicides". Huffington Post. October 17, 2009. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "Police affidavit: Nurse who coaxed suicides online may have had more victims". Tmcnet. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ "Teen urged to commit suicide on webcam". The Toronto Star. February 28, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ "More online suicide chat cases sought". The Ottawa Sun. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
- ^ "U.S. man charged with inciting Ottawa student's suicide". National Post. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ Jody Ambrozjody (January 21, 2009). "Minnesota Nurse Charged in Suicides of Nadia Kajouji, Mark Drybrough". Fox News. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "Man Aids Suicide Over Internet | Chat Rooms | Two Kill Themselves". Oneindia News. April 24, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ Williams, Chris (April 23, 2010). "Nurse charged with aiding suicides via Internet". MSNBC. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "US man charged with aiding suicides via the Web". Taipei Times. April 25, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "No Internet for Man Charged in Suicides". The New York Times. May 25, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
- ^ "More online suicide chat cases sought". Cnews. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
External links
- Minnesota v. Melcher-Dinkel, Complaint, April 23, 2010
- "Un infirmier américain dans l'eau chaude", Le Droit (French), March 1, 2009
- "Enfermero alentaba a suicidas potenciales por Internet", Inforamador (Spanish), October 17, 2009
- Američan nabádal cez chat tínedžerov na samovraždu "Američan nabádal cez chat tínedžerov na samovraždu", TVnoviny (Slovak), March 20, 2010
- "Bu da intihar röntgencisi!", Mynet.haber (Turkish), March 21, 2010
- "Man moedigt mensen aan zelfmoord te plegen voor webcam", AD Buitenland (Dutch), March 22, 2010
- "İnternette intihar ettiriyor", Hurriyet (Turkish), March 22, 2010
- "İntihar röntgencisi 4 kişiyi öldürmüş!", Millyet.com (Turkish), March 22, 2010
- "Suicide d'une étudiante d'Ottawa; Un internaute américain est accusé", Radio-Canada (French), April 23, 2010
- americano é acusado de encorajar suicídios via web "Ex-enfermeiro americano é acusado de encorajar suicídios via web", Estadão (Portuguese), April 23, 2010
- "Bí ẩn vụ tự sát qua mạng (kỳ cuối)", 24h (Vietnamese), June 11, 2010