The prosecutor Cecilia Bonsignore archived the investigation that began in December, about the link that a Uruguayan has with a website that encourages suicide. There are no associated deaths to the use of the site in Uruguay, the prosecutor herself informed The Observer this Tuesday afternoon.
The case was made known in December 2021, by a publication of the American newspaper New York Times and, since then, both the investigated and his family put themselves “at the disposal” of the prosecutionBonsignor said. However, the 29-year-old stated through his lawyer that I would not declarein use of the resource that corresponds to him during the criminal investigation.
The prosecution nor did he receive requests for international cooperation and that was another reason to file the case. Meanwhile, in the United States, several legislators sent notes to Google, Microsoft and other Internet services with the intention of exchanging on the subject.
In dialogue with the American newspaper, through an email, the Uruguayan denies being the founder of the site although he defends it. The young man assures that it is a website that helps improve the lives of some people. “I am very sorry if some people decided to end his life,” he assured then.
However, another person who also appears as the creator of that virtual space mentioned the Uruguayan as a co-founder, according to the New York Times. Bonsignore pointed out that it is not possible, with the elements that he had at the time, to determine what type of participation the Uruguayan had in the site.
The journalistic investigation reveals the creation of the page in 2018, which bills itself as a “suicide and mental health discussion forum.” “Pro-choice (of suicide) does not mean that we encourage you to do anything. We offer a safe space to discuss suicide without the censorship that exists in other places,” the site reads.
The American newspaper identified 45 members who had committed suicide in the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Canada and Australia. More than 500 even wrote “farewell threads” announcing how and when they planned to take their own lives, then never posted again.
Marquis and Serge –the fictitious names that the founders use to publish– started the site in 2018, in which users register anonymously and access forums, live chats, share conversations about forms of suicide and talk about ways to do it. The Uruguayan, according to the newspaper, writes under the pseudonym of Serge.
The Observer reported on December 12 that Interpol studied the case for 48 hours before. On December 21, the prosecution itself reported, through its spokesperson, that would initiate an investigation and that it would be Bonsignore along with his prosecutorial team who would be in charge.
Is it a crime?
In Uruguay, these practices can incur a crime of determination or aid to suicide, provided for in article 315 of the Penal Code. “Whoever determines another to commit suicide or helps him to commit it, if death occurs will be punished,” he says. The sentences range from six months to six years in prison.
However, for this, the investigation should be able to prove that someone committed suicide in Uruguay and that this page was helpful in doing so. According to the prosecutor, that was not possible at the time.
The file is always notwithstandingmeans that the prosecutor can initiate or resume the investigation in the event that new facts occur or new evidence is provided that justifies it.
The Vida hotline (suicide prevention hotline) provides care 24 hours across the country on the phone 0800 0767 or *0767 from the cellphone.
