The first woman to die in a ‘suicide pod’ in the middle of a Swiss forest was found with mysterious strangulation marks on her neck, raising questions about her death
The pod is branded with Carl Sagan’s quote ‘We are a way for the universe to know itself'(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
In a chilling turn of events, the first woman to die using a ‘suicide pod’ in a Swiss forest was discovered with unexplained strangulation marks on her neck.
The 64-year-old American woman’s death, which occurred in the first recorded use of a Sacro pod, has raised eyebrows due to the supposed quick and painless nature of the process, which involves flooding the lungs with Nitrogen gas.
An autopsy carried out in November 2024 revealed the disturbing marks on her neck, sparking speculation about potential malfunction or interference, as reported by Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant.
Dr Florian Willet, president of The Last Resort, the organisation behind the pods, later informed police that the woman’s body appeared to cramp strongly two and a half minutes into the procedure.
Last Resort’s Sarco assisted suicide capsule(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
He stated this was typical in deaths involving nitrogen. Six and a half minutes after the woman initiated the process, the pod’s iPad reportedly emitted a loud alarm.
At this point, Dr Willet, who was on a call with Dr Philip Nitschk, said “she’s still alive, Philip.”
The alarm ceased 30 minutes after the button was pressed, with Dr Willet eventually confirming “she really looks dead.”, reports the Mirror.
Dr Willet, reportedly the only person present at the time of her death, remained in police custody for 70 days.
The device, created by Dr Philip Nitschke, founder of Exit International, was discovered in a remote woodland area close to a cabin in Merishausen, a countryside region of Switzerland near the German border, the BBC reported.
The contraption is run by the Swiss assisted-dying organisation The Last Resort, and is designed to give the user a tranquil death upon pressing a button inside. The nitrogen gas is meant to make the patient drift off to sleep before dying peacefully within minutes through lack of oxygen.
(Image: Getty Images)
Dr Philip Nitschke maintained Dr Willet had endured psychological distress after his arrest and detention relating to the death in Switzerland. The Last Resort stated the arrest had left him “broken”.
Dr Willet plunged from a third floor window in January and was admitted to hospital for mental health treatment.
Dr Nitschke revealed Dr Willet died by assisted suicide on May 5, this year.
Swiss Chief Prosecutor Peter Sticher suggested the woman’s death might not have gone as planned, hinting at the potential for “intentional homicide,” though Dr Willet was never formally charged with any offence.
The report highlights the pod was opened and shut multiple times before the process started to check its seal, with one forensic specialist telling the court that the woman had serious neck wounds. The incident was reportedly captured by two CCTV cameras.
De Volkskrant, who had access to the footage, noted that the pod’s internal camera switched on twice in quick succession around two minutes after the woman activated it, although the view did not clearly depict what transpired. Swiss legislation forbids assisted suicide if there is any external involvement or if those aiding have a “self-serving motive.”
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