Family Of 3 Allegedly Kill Themselves, Stream Incident On Facebook Live

An elderly couple and their son in India allegedly took their lives as part of a pact Sunday. The family reportedly streamed the incident live on a Facebook page, the police said.

The couple lived in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal, and left home early on the day of the incident. The family went to a desolate place in the coastal village of Bakkhali, where they decided to end their lives, the police officers involved in the investigation told the Hindustan Times.

“The bodies have been sent for postmortem examination (autopsy). We have started an investigation,” Bhaskar Mukherjee, superintendent of Sunderbans police district, told local media.

According to preliminary investigation, the incident took place hours after the couple’s daughter, who was missing till Sunday evening, was accused of defalcating funds of nearly $4,000 from a self-help group for women. The couple’s daughter was allegedly accused by several women from the Sultannagar area of stealing the money they raised.

“A large number of these women stormed the family’s home at Kulpi on Saturday night. It is alleged that they assaulted the couple’s daughter who pleaded innocence. The family filed a complaint at Kulpi police station later in the night. Five of these women are being questioned,” a district police officer said on condition of anonymity.

The deceased have been identified as Shyamal Naskar (53), Rita Naskar (43) and Abhishek Naskar (25), according to Prabhat Khabar [Google Translate]. The report also said that the three hanged themselves.

In November last year, five members of a family in the southern state of Karnataka killed themselves after fearing a police investigation into the alleged sale of a newborn baby. The five people consumed poison to end their lives.

In August, a man and his wife took their lives by jumping into a river along with their two children. The incident took place in the state of Andhra Pradesh. The police said a family dispute was probably the cause of the deaths.

If you have thoughts of suicide, confidential help is available for free at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Call 1-800-273-8255. The line is available 24 hours, every day.