Woman jumps to her death at Sandton City mall

Sandton City has confirmed that a woman died by suicide at the mall on Wednesday night.

The mall’s management said on Twitter that the person allegedly jumped to their death just after 8pm.

Sandton City added that police are investigating the incident.

“Sandton City management send their deepest condolences to the family of the deceased, and request the removal of footage from social media platforms in respect of the deceased and their family,” it added.

Captain Bheki Xulu of the Sandton Police Station confirmed that an inquest docket has been opened.

According to South African Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag), between January and September it received 466,407 calls related to suicide. This is a 47.75% increase from 2020.

ALSO READ: Mental health crisis plagues SA men as suicide rates soar

Doctor Ivan de Klerk, a clinical psychologist at Zwavelstream Clinic, said South Africa has a massive mental health crisis. This has been worsened by Covid-19 and the lockdown in the country.

The World Health Organisation reported men in SA were four times more likely to commit suicide than women.

“This should indicate far higher rates of depression amongst men in South Africa, and yet we see significantly more women seeking help for depression,” said Loyiso Maqubela, a clinical psychologist practising at Akeso Milnerton in Cape Town.

Need someone to speak to? Contact the South African Depression and Anxiety Group’s 24-hour helpline on 011 234 4837.  

NOW READ: Prasa cleared of liability over woman’s ‘suicide attempt’

Additional reporting by Marizka Coetzer

This article first appeared on Caxton publication Sandton Chronicle. Read the original article here.