Latest news with #selfharm
The Independent
2 days ago
- The Independent
Police arrest man accused of pressuring US teen to kill himself online
German authorities have arrested a 20-year-old man suspected of a disturbing online campaign of child abuse, which included allegedly coercing a 13-year-old American boy to kill himself on livestream. The German-Iranian national was taken into custody on Tuesday at his parents' apartment in Hamburg. He faces suspicion of engaging in an online campaign of cybergrooming and virtual sexual abuse of children. His name has not been released in line with German privacy regulations. Prosecutors have yet to decide whether to bring formal charges. He denied wrongdoing in a closed-doors appearance before a judge, authorities said. 'The acts exceed human imagination,' Hamburg Attorney General Jörg Fröhlich said at a news conference Wednesday, German news agency dpa reported. The man is accused of perpetrating a complex international cybergrooming operation as a member of '764,' which the FBI describes as a violent online network that exploits minors virtually to coerce them into acts of self-harm and sexual abuse. The man is suspected of committing 120 crimes against eight victims, ages 11 to 15, who were from Germany, England, Canada and the U.S. Another of the victims, a 14-year-old Canadian girl, attempted to take her own life. Authorities have not released the names of any of the alleged victims. In the case of the 13-year-old American boy, German police and prosecutors said the suspect used another underaged victim to pressure the teen. The violations occurred over the internet between 2021, when the suspect was 16 years old, and 2023, police said. Through his online pseudonym, 'White Tiger," he preyed on desperate children in online forums, including those discussing suicide, dpa reported. Investigators believe he exploited their vulnerabilities, forcing them to create pornographic and violent recordings. 'These are depths that are difficult to bear,' Hamburg police chief Falk Schnabel said during the news conference. The man made recordings of the acts to keep as trophies, investigators said, and used them as leverage against the victims by threatening to publish them unless the children committed even more self-harm on camera. Police said Wednesday they want publicity about the case to help prevent future online abuse. 'We hope that word of the arrest will spread within the community and that this will act as an internal deterrent,' Fröhlich said. If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@ or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988, or visit to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a you are in another country, you can go to to find a helpline near you
The Independent
3 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Man with cerebral palsy and epilepsy detained by Home Office for 10 months despite doctor's warning
A disabled man with cerebral palsy and epilepsy was detained by the Home Office for ten months despite a doctor warning the government his detention was 'unsafe' and 'grossly detrimental to his wellbeing'. The shocking case emerged in a report into immigration detention, published on Thursday, which warned sites are becoming increasingly unsafe due to an influx of foreign prisoners. Foreign national offenders have been moved from prisons into immigration detention sites – which also house other migrants waiting on deportation – as part of a desperate scramble to reduce overcrowding in jails. This has led to male immigration detention centres becoming increasingly unsafe while drug use, which has rarely been a problem in the centres in the past, has become a big concern. Among the revelations in the Independent Monitoring Board's annual report, monitors found that: Drug dealers were using vulnerable men in immigration detention as 'guinea pigs' to test out new substances Migrants were being held for over a year in detention, with the number detained for over six months at its highest level for six years The use of force by staff against detained people increased during 2024 Foreign offenders told monitors they wanted to book their own flights to leave the UK but Home Office policy prevents them from leaving An increasing number of people resorting to self-harm, with monitors 'very concerned about the rise in numbers attempting suicide while detained' In one particularly disturbing case, a man who had cerebral palsy, epilepsy, mobility issues and learning difficulties was detained for ten months. In his first month, a doctor concluded that detention was 'grossly detrimental to his wellbeing' and that it was 'unsafe to look after him at the detention centre'. The man was put in a healthcare facility away from the rest of the detainees, resulting in him spending the majority of his time confined to one room. The report found: 'His physical health was impacted during his time in detention with at least one admission to hospital.' His mental health was also 'adversely affected' with inspectors finding 'him in distress at his situation'. He also told inspectors that 'he wanted to return to his country of origin'. Monitors said they had serious concerns about the treatment of vulnerable people in immigration detention. They also noted that illicit drugs have now become common place, adding: 'Substance misuse, including psychoactive and synthetic substances, had a knock-on effect on healthcare, with ambulances required in some instances. 'At Brook House immigration removal centre (IRC) dealers were thought to have used vulnerable men as guinea pigs to test these substances, with one man requiring medical care on several occasions as a result'. Charlotte Khan, head of advocacy and public affairs at refugee charity Care4Calais, said: 'The UK's detention system destroys lives, and this report highlights exactly how prolonged periods of detention, and grossly insufficient medical care, are bad for people's physical and mental health. 'Some of the examples in this report, including people with severe disabilities being detained, should act as a wake up call for the UK government, and aid calls for humane alternatives to detention'. Elisabeth Davies, IMB national chair, said the issues that her inspectorate were raising were not being addressed, adding: 'I find myself echoing the same concerns, alongside new ones, a year later'. A Home Office spokesperson said: 'This government inherited a flawed and under-resourced detention system from the previous government, where years of neglect allowed unacceptable conditions to take root. We are taking decisive action to turn this around. 'We will accept nothing but the highest standards of behaviour by staff, safety and welfare provision for those in our care. Since taking office, we have increased staffing levels and are investing in modernising facilities to continuously improve conditions and safeguards.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Olly Alexander opens up about living with an eating disorder and self harming as a teenager in candid conversation with Pete Wicks
Olly Alexander has opened up about living with an eating disorder and self harming as a teenager in a candid chat with Pete Wicks. The singer, 34, appeared on Wednesday's episode of the podcast Pete Wicks: Man Made, which talks to modern male role models about what it means to be one. In the honest chat, Olly revealed that his mental health took a downward spiral in his teen years after the breakdown of his parents' marriage and his struggle to understand his sexuality. Olly said he began self harming as a way of 'gaining control' over his life, and said it was almost as though he used it to punish himself because he felt he didn't deserve to feel good. He also became bulimic, an eating disorders where people binge eat then rid then purge their bodies of the extra food, which he said got so severe he developed a heart condition. 'My parents split when I was 13,' he said. 'My house growing up was quite chaotic. There was a lot going on that wasn't just me trying to figure out my sexuality and I hid this from my mum for a long, long time, but I was self-harming. I was cutting myself. He added: 'I was bulimic for a long time. I had an eating disorder and I was giving myself an irregular heart. 'I was making myself ill basically from everything I was doing and I went to hospital with my mum and I had hidden everything from her for so long about how bad I was feeling and what I was doing to myself. 'Then finally when she found out, I just was like, I can't keep doing this. But obviously I kept doing it actually for a few years afterwards but it was definitely a shift that moment and it carried on to my early 20s where I just had a lot of harmful behaviours.' Olly said that it wasn't until he signed a record deal and his manager urged him to see a therapist that he did. He has been with the same therapist for 10 years. 'And where are you now in terms of how you feel about yourself and how you feel about the man that you've become?' Pete asked. Olly began: 'I don't always feel amazing but I feel I've been on a journey and I'm grateful for the journey and it's the foundation I have within myself I think is now really strong because of knocks I felt I was taking and trying to figure out how it made me feel with the help of professional support and stuff. 'I feel like "Oh wow I know a lot about myself now".' In 2018, Olly won GQ's Live Act Of The Year Award and in his acceptance speech, he spoke out about male suicide rates. Speaking to Pete, he expressed how he felt it was an important topic to address as suicide is the biggest killer of men. 'I remember saying in my acceptance speech something similar to about how I'd never expected to be here and I mentioned how suicide is the biggest killer of men,' he said. 'I wanted to say it because I was like, "look, we need to talk about this." I know that I have all these issues of being a man related to my sexuality and how I feel about masculinity and I'm trying to get somewhere with it. 'But I'm not the only one that feels this way and every man's going to feel differently about their identity or their gender but everybody struggles. I think men, especially, aren't good or don't have the tools necessary to talk about it and it's created this huge crisis that's been going on for a long, long time. 'It's still the biggest killer of men under a certain age and I remember just bringing that up and feeling like gosh was that probably not the right thing to say at an awards show?' Pete added: 'It absolutely is because it's about starting a conversation for people to accept that there are a million different ways to be a man.' Elsewhere in the interview, Olly revealed his art teacher Mr Corker was the first man he felt safe around. Pete asked the star: 'So that's someone that you actually knew, someone who was in your life and someone was there for that formative years, why?' Olly said: 'Well, I'll be honest, Pete, it was so hard to pick. I was like, I can't pick any male role models. It made me feel sad.' He continued: 'Well I really liked him because he was very chill. First couple years in secondary school I was picked on at, generally hated school but then in a few years in I had some really good friends and we were just a little unit and we would just hang out in the art class every free period or at lunchtime just drawing and Mr. Corker would just let us hang out and he was always just very chilled out very encouraging. 'He was quite young so he's one of those teachers where the kids just like him and he would just let us chill out in the art room and he was always so encouraging because I thought maybe I would go to art school and I just always appreciated that that he had this very chill, safe vibe about him.' Pete said: 'I mean, safe is a really incredible word to use. Is that the first time maybe that you'd been around a man that had made you feel safe?' 'I don't know,' Olly replied. 'I think, yeah, I felt unsafe, not in a massively serious way, but just didn't know how to be myself around a lot of guys. 'But this guy, Mr. Corker, he just seemed to not care so you could be yourself around him.' If you've been affected by this article call Samaritans on 116 123, visit or visit for confidential support.
The Sun
4 days ago
- Health
- The Sun
Lumberjack sliced off his own penis and ears after ‘overwhelming urge' – as doctors issue drug warning
A MAN high on drugs sliced off his body parts during a terrifying psychotic episode. The 31-year-old lumberjack had schizophrenia and had stopped taking his antipsychotic medicines just days before the self-inflicted attack. 1 In January 2024, the man cut off both of his ears, his penis and inflicted deep wounds on his neck and chest. He also nearly severed his entire left arm. He later told doctors he felt completely "overwhelmed" and acted on a "sudden urge" to hurt himself during what was diagnosed as a drug-triggered episode. The unnamed man had taken large quantities of kratom, a herbal supplement with opioid-like effects and had also been smoking cannabis. Kratom, which has been linked to dozens of deaths, is legal in some countries, banned in others, and completely unregulated in many. The man had been brewing kratom leaves into tea for five years, believing it helped his sleep and mood. Doctors said the combination of drug use, mental illness, and suddenly stopping his medication triggered a psychotic state in which he acted under powerful delusions. Despite his severe injuries, the man still managed to call the emergency services to come and help him. When he finally arrived at the A&E, he was awake but confused and weak, doctors from various hospitals in Czechia, wrote in a report about his case. He showed no signs of distress about what had happened and was unable to recall some of the details of the horror that had just happened. Toxicology tests confirmed mitragynine, the active compound in kratom, and cannabis, but no other substances. Video reveals the eye-watering reality of a penis fracture The man had stopped taking his schizophrenia medication, quetiapine, just two days before. Surgeons managed to save his life but could not reattach the amputated organs. He later underwent skin graft surgery to cover the penile stump. Doctors warned the case highlights the serious dangers of kratom, especially for people with mental health conditions. 'This case raises awareness of the serious adverse effects of kratom, especially in patients with a history of mental illness,' they wrote in the Frontiers in Psychiatry. Kratom is also under growing international scrutiny from health bodies. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns it can cause liver damage, seizures and addiction. And a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report found 91 deaths linked to the substance between 2016 and 2017, though most of those involved other drugs as well. Although this case report did not specifically focus on the effects of cannabis, studies have linked cannabis use to worse outcomes for mental illness, including schizophrenia. The man was stabilised in hospital and discharged a week later, with no remaining psychotic symptoms, the report concluded. What is kratom? Kratom is a herbal substance made from the leaves of a tree native to Southeast Asia. It's sometimes sold as a powder, tablet or brewed into tea, and people use it for its stimulant or sedative effects, depending on the dose. At low doses, kratom can make people feel more alert, energetic and sociable. But at higher doses, it acts more like a sedative, causing drowsiness and confusion. Some users report feeling nauseous or dizzy. The drug affects the brain like opioids do, and long-term use can lead to dependence or addiction. People trying to stop may experience withdrawal symptoms such as irritability, sweating, muscle aches and trouble sleeping. Kratom is legal in some parts of the world, banned in others, and often sold online as a "natural" remedy. But it's unregulated, which means you don't always know what you're getting, some products have been found to contain other harmful substances. In the US, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned that kratom can cause liver damage, seizures and even death. Source: Talk to Frank
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Health
- South China Morning Post
Singapore study reveals 1 in 4 young people have self-harmed
One in four Singaporeans aged 15 to 35 have engaged in deliberate self-harm at least once, researchers have found, with the behaviour especially prevalent among teenagers – highlighting mounting concerns about emotional distress and unhealthy coping strategies in younger age groups. Advertisement The findings, published in March, were drawn from a national study conducted by Singapore's Institute of Mental Health (IMH) involving 2,600 respondents. It categorised behaviours such as cutting, burning, hitting or other forms of deliberate self-harm as non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI). The median age that such self-harm starts is 14, while males typically have a second peak at around age 18, according to the study. Roughly 11.6 per cent of respondents reported engaging in self-harm at least five times. Cutting was the most prevalent form of self-injury, cited by about 13.5 per cent of respondents, followed by severe scratching, self-punching and headbanging. Advertisement Although NSSI is not formally classified as a mental disorder, experts have cautioned that it often reflects underlying psychological distress. Swapna Verma, chairman of IMH's medical board, told The Straits Times that young people may turn to self-harm when overwhelmed by emotions they are unable to manage in healthier ways.
