Man hangs self after being stood up at mall
Being stood up apparently did not sit well with a 32-year-old despondent man who hanged himself late Saturday over the perceived slight in Quezon City.
“I waited for you at the mall until 4 p.m. but you never came,” read a note that Roderick Echalas wrote in Filipino before he killed himself inside his rented home on Rosal Street, Botanical Compound in Barangay (village) Central.
Police Officer 2 Anthony Tejerero of the Quezon City Police District’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit, however, said that they have yet to determine who Echalas had addressed his note to.
According to Tejerero, a group of children initially stumbled onto Echalas’ body at 1 a.m. Sunday when they peeked inside the door, which had been left open, of his house.
The children ran away when they saw the victim hanging from a wooden beam, alarming Echalas’ neighbors Josephine de la Torre, Lucas Giray and Rommel Cobangbang who were drinking nearby.
When the three decided to investigate, they found Echalas hanging from the ceiling, a nylon cord looped around his neck, prompting them to report their discovery to the police.
Tejerero said that according to the suicide’s neighbors, Echalas had rarely gone out of his house since his live-in partner left him three months ago.
Jeannette I. Andrade
If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, please reach out to the National Center for Mental Health (NCMH). Their crisis hotlines are available at 1553 (Luzon-wide landline toll-free), 0917-899-USAP (8727), 0966-351-4518, and 0908-639-2672. For more information, visit their website: (https://doh.gov.ph/NCMH-Crisis-Hotline)
Alternatively, you can contact Hopeline PH at the following numbers: 0917-5584673, 0918-8734673, 88044673. Additional resources are available at ngf-mindstrong.org, or connect with them on Facebook at Hopeline PH.
