Coroner baffled by suicides as police downplay internet link | Technology | guardian.co.uk Jump to content [s] Jump to site navigation [0] Jump to search [4] Terms and conditions [8] Sign in | Register Text larger | smaller Home Jan 23 2008: Today's paper Jobs Back to online version Search: guardian.co.uk Technology Web Home News Comment Games Gadgets Internet IT Telecoms Ask Jack 1245pm GMT Coroner baffled at spate of suicidesDavid Batty, Jemima Kiss and agencies guardian.co.uk, Wednesday January 23 2008 Contact usClose Contact the Technology editor tech@guardian.co.uk Report errors or inaccuracies: userhelp@guardian.co.uk Letters for publication should be sent to: letters@guardian.co.uk If you need help using the site: userhelp@guardian.co.uk Call the main Guardian and Observer switchboard: +44 (0)20 7278 2332 Advertising guide License/buy our content About this articleClose This article was first published on guardian.co.uk on Wednesday January 23 2008. It was last updated at 15:01 on January 23 2008.A coroner in south Wales said today he had "no idea" what lay behind the rising spate of suicides by young people in the area. The comment by Philip Walters came as local police downplayed suggestion that they were investigating an internet "suicide chain" following claims that the deaths of seven young people were linked to the social networking site Bebo. The latest victim, Natasha Randall, 17, was found dead at her family home in Blaengarw, near Bridgend last week. Two other teenage girls who knew her attempted to harm themselves the following day. Last night, one of them was still on a life support machine in hospital, while the second girl was discharged from hospital. Police believe that all the victims may be linked, possibly because they met online. Walters, the coroner for Bridgend, Rhondda Cynon Taff and Merthyr Tydfil, said the number of suicides in the area had been increasing "year on year" over the past three years. He said: "There seems to be a larger number in Bridgend. The problem is that we've got these young suicides, but in very few cases do we get to the bottom of anything. I can't understand it. "In the vast majority of these cases, we can't find any underlying reason for it. The thing that concerns us most of all is that we never know why." South Wales police seized Natasha's computer and officers said they were attempting to trace any internet communication between the victims. But a police spokeswoman denied that the force had ever said there was an established link between the deaths, which the tabloids have labelled "copycat suicides". She said: "We have taken Natasha Randall's computer to see what kind of things she was saying and to build up a picture of what happened, rather than to investigate any specific site. That is a routine part of investigating a sudden death and we have never said we were looking at any internet sites." The divisional commander of Bridgend police, Superintendent Tim Jones, said earlier there was no direct link between Randall's death and the suicide attempt made by a 15-year old girl in Pontycymmer on Friday. He said police were tracing friends of the girls and visiting local parents Over the past year six young men have killed themselves in the area, several of whom had posted profiles on the social networking website Bebo. Following their deaths other youngsters set up memorial sites where friends post messages and contribute a "virtual brick" to a "remembrance wall". Postings on the page for Natasha included messages reading: "RIP chick", "Sleep Tight Princess" and "Sweetdreams Angel". Walters has already held inquests into the deaths of friends Dale Crole, David Dilling and Thomas Davies, but said there was nothing linking them to social networking sites. He said: "The sites are global, so why would they cause an issue in Bridgend in particular? "You can't link any of the deaths to these websites. There was no mention of them in any of the inquests that have already taken place." Walters said an inquest into Natasha's death was opened and adjourned on Monday, and would be concluded later this year. He said the cause of her death was not yet known, and added that he was awaiting toxicology reports, ordered in the case of every suspected suicide. Before her death, Natasha, a first year student at Bridgend college, had also posted messages dedicated to people who had killed themselves. One message, dedicated to Liam Clarke, 20, who was found dead in a Bridgend Park on December 27, read: "Tasha Randall says: 'RIP Clarky boy!! gonna miss ya! always remember the gd times! love ya x' 'Me too!'" Clarke was friends with another victim, Thomas Davies, 20, who killed himself just two days after the funeral of a third young man, David Dilling, 19, who also killed himself. Yesterday, Davies' mother Melanie warned parents to keep a close eye on their children's internet use. She said: "I think the problem is they do not know how to speak like adults about serious issues like this. They can speak to each other on the computer but do not know how to express their emotions in other ways. "Thomas would spend about three hours a night on the computer, talking to his friends. The thing is that most parents don't understand what they are doing or what they are talking about. "He did go on Bebo and apparently he had a page on there. He must have discussed his other friends dying on there because it had upset him. Like most parents, I have no idea how to get on these sites or what other kids are talking about." Police are also linking the deaths of Dale Crole, 18, of nearby Porthcawl, and Zachary Barnes, 17, of Bridgend, with the other deaths. Two weeks ago Gareth Morgan, 27, was found dead in his bedroom at his home in Bridgend. A Bebo spokeswoman said: "The loss of any young life is always distressing. We will work closely with the authorities to provide any assistance which will help them with their investigations. We have close relationships with our member community, law enforcement agencies, and public safety partners to provide support and advice for our users. We are committed to providing our members with the safest possible environment online." Contact us | Print | Clip | Email | Share ShareClose Digg reddit Google Bookmarks Yahoo! 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