Patient shoots himself dead in hospital in South B, Nairobi

Star Newspaper

Published:Feb.,27 2024 12:47 PM(EAT)

There was panic at a Nairobi hospital when a patient who was waiting to be attended to pulled out his pistol and shot himself dead in a horrible suicide incident.

The deceased was a licenced gun holder, police said.

Witnesses said the deceased identified as Abdala Mohamed, 72 had been brought to the emergency section of the hospital on Monday, February 26 afternoon when he shot himself in the chin.

The deceased was armed with a Beretta pistol, which he used in the mission.

Police and the hospital officials said the deceased had been rushed there aboard a private car where the incident happened.

By then, the drugs that he was to use were not at the emergency area and plans were being made for their delivery.

It is not clear what he was being attended to.

This angered him and started making calls before he reached out his pistol and shot himself in the chin blowing up his head, police and witnesses said.

His driver who had brought him and was taking care of him then rushed out calling for help.

He succumbed while being attended to.

Officials said they are investigating the incident. A check at the scene established his car was damaged by the bullet indicating he was still waiting in the car at the emergency area, police said.

The deceased lived in the nearby estate in South B.

This is the latest case of suicide to be reported.

Police say cases of suicide have been on the rise amid calls for action to address the same.

There were 174 cases of suicide reported in 2020 as compared to 196 in 2019, 302 in 2018, 421 in 2017 and 302 in 2016. The majority of the victims were male, police reports say.

Police say the trend has been worrying and increasing as up to two cases are reported daily.

The World Health Organization says such cases are attributed to joblessness, death, academic failures or pressures, legal difficulties and financial difficulties.

Other reasons are bullying, previous suicide attempts, history of suicide in a family, alcoholism and substance misuse, depression and bipolar disorder.

WHO rates suicide as a serious global public health issue that is among the top 20 leading causes of death worldwide.

Kenya ranks position 114 among the 175 countries with the highest suicide rates.