Delhi Police saves man's life after Facebook alerts about suicide bid
Jun 05, 2021
New Delhi [India], June 5 : A 39-year-old man's life was saved by Delhi Police who was alerted by officials at US-based Facebook about suicidal behaviour that he displayed in a live video of himself that he posted on the social media platform.
The police were alerted from Facebook's United States' office about a suspicious self-harm live video being posted by the user himself from Delhi.
"On the night of June 3 or June 4, 2021, when Sohan Lal (name changed) inflicted multiple, deep cuts on his hand, after an altercation with neighbours, little did he know that his life will be saved by a midnight call from 14,000 km away. Sohan Lal, a widower, and a father of two young kids, who works in a sweet shop, has been emotionally vulnerable since the death of his wife in 2016. The altercation with neighbors, triggered him to take the extreme step. While doing so, he broadcasted it live on Facebook," an official statement said.
At around 12.50 am, Cyber Prevention Awareness Detection of Delhi Police (CyPAD) received the alert from Facebook's US office as part of the coordination framework established between CyPAD and international social media platforms.
After analysing the account details shared by Facebook over email, the address was obtained by CyPAD's Technical Team.
"Immediately, the actionable information was shared with Police Station Palam Village. Simultaneously, the information, including the likely location of the person and his Facebook live clip in which he was showing suicidal tendencies, was also shared with the Delhi Police Command Room, for activating the nearby PCR Vans and Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs)," the statement said.
"A nearby ERV, and its in-charge, PSI Amit Kumar of PS Palam Village, took immediate cognizance of the matter and rushed to the given address to trace the man who was on the verge of committing suicide," the statement said adding that man was found in a very bad shape with heavy blood loss and was shifted to a nearby hospital and then rushed to AIIMS Trauma Centre where his life was saved.
