TV Ad-Pitchman Don Lapre Commits Suicide in Arizona Jail Cell Two Days Before Criminal Trial Set to Begin

Television pitchman Don Lapre commits suicide in Arizona jail cell, where he was being held for allegedly scamming thousands of people to the tune of nearly $52 million.

Remember TV ad-pitchman Don Lapre, who claimed he got rich by placing ads in newspapers all over the country? Well, he committed suicide Sunday morning in an Arizona prison, where he was being held for allegedly defrauding at least 220,000 people of nearly $52 million. He ran a nationwide scheme to sell worthless Internet-based businesses. He killed himself just two days before his trial was set to begin on Tuesday. Too bad he took the easy way out. The people he robbed deserved some justice.

REPORT: Ten Percent of D.C. Public Schools' 8th Graders Have Considered or Attempted Suicide

A shocking report was released by Washington D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson on Tuesday, which paints a bleak statistic that 10 percent of the school system's 4,000 eighth graders have considered or attempted suicide.

Chancellor Kaya Henderson sketched a bleak statistical picture of life in DCPS middle schools at Tuesday’s D.C. Council hearing, including a chilling survey finding that 10 percent of the school system’s 4,000 eighth graders have tried to kill themselves.

Henderson and other officials said they do not take the figure at face value. It is self-reported by students who filled out the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey administered last fall by OSSE. They said they regard it more as a reflection of the despair that often pervades their world, and of an on-line culture in which stories and images of teen suicide are readily accessible.

“They’re exposed to the Internet, to Facebook. They’re exposed to so many more things than we were,” said D.C. State Superintendent of Education Hosanna Mahaley. “Things we didn’t think about until well in our adult years.” But even allowing for the adolescent sense of drama and hyperbole, the figure is sobering.

The statistics paint a really grim picture of how some of our youths view the world around them. Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-schools-insider/post/middle-school-survey-sex-fear-and-suicide-attempts/2011/09/27/gIQAKwz92K_blog.html?hpid=z3

Long Island Tech Whiz ReiJane Huai Commits Suicide Amid Class Action Lawsuit & SEC Scrutiny over Insider Shady Accounty

ReiJane Huai, a millionaire Long Island software whiz, who was under scrutiny by the feds for insider trading, committed suicide on the front lawn of his Glen Head home, the NY Post said.

The married dad was facing a federal class-action lawsuit and a Security and Exchange Commission probe over allegations of financial funny business at FalconStor, a data-storage firm he founded. His friends -- billionaire New York Islanders owner Charles Wang and Huai’s longtime legal adviser, Roy Reichbach -- arrived at the scene of the gruesome suicide yesterday.

Um, why kill yourself after being greedy? Stand tall and take your punishment like a man. I have no sympathy when rich people get in over their heads through greed. It's quite obvious who ReiJane Huai's god is.

Chanthy Mao Charged with Murder in Stabbing Deaths of Her Two Children, Savann & Savanna Mao in Their South Philly Home

What the heck is going on in the news? Chanthy Mao, a South Philadelphia mother with a history of mental illness, has been charged with murder after stabbing her two children to death. Mao, also known as Sotheary Mao, confessed to stabbing Savann Mao, 8, and Savanna Mao, 12, police told NBC Philadelphia. If this woman attempted to commit suicide last year and was recently hospitalized for a mental evaluation, why was she left alone with her children? It seems that the mother, who migrated from Cambodia, was not only a threat to herself but to her children as well. This could have been avoided.

View more videos at: http://nbcphiladelphia.com.

Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, Hedge Fund Manager, Whose Firm Lost $1.4B in Madoff Ponzi Scheme, Commits Suicide

They ought to add murder charges to the fraud charges scumbag Bernard Madoff is facing. The French business daily La Tribune has reported that Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, a founder of the hedge fund Access International Advisors, was found dead early Tuesday in his office in Manhattan, after losing as much as $1.4 billion that had been invested with Bernard L. Madoff, the money manager who has been accused of running a $50 billion Ponzi scheme.

La Tribune reported that Mr. de la Villehuchet had been trying to recover the money that Access International raised in Europe and invested through Mr. Madoff’s business.

Luxalpha, a $1.4 billion Luxembourg-based fund sold across Europe, invested in Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities. Access International last week called Mr. Madoff’s arrest a shocking development in a note to investors. Investors in the fund included a unit of Rothschild and several clients of the Swiss bank UBS.

UBS had been the custodian and administrator of the fund until this year when Access International took over. No one answered the phone at Access International’s New York office. UBS has stated that Mr. Madoff was not on the bank’s wealth management recommended list as a direct investment option but it produced and sold funds containing the investment manager’s products. UBS would establish fund of funds structures at clients’ requests. Source: NY Times

To echo the words of Jamaican superstar Buju Banton's song, I will say of Mr. Madoff:

Murderer! Blood is on your shoulders
Kill I today you cannot kill I tomorrow
Murderer! Your insides must be hollow
How does it feel to take the life of another
Yes, you can hide from man but not your conscience
You eat the bread of sorrow
Drink the wine of violence
Allowed yourself to be conquered by the serpent
Why did you disobey the first commandment
Walk through the valley I fear no pestilence
God is my witness and He is my evidence
Lift up my eyes from wence cometh help
You will never escape this judgement

Of course, some parts of the lyrics are in patois, the broken language of Jamaica. The message is the same, Bernard Madoff is no better than a murderer for what he has done to these people.

Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, Hedge Fund Manager, Whose Firm Lost $1.4B in Madoff Ponzi Scheme, Commits Suicide

They ought to add murder charges to the fraud charges scumbag Bernard Madoff is facing. The French business daily La Tribune has reported that Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, a founder of the hedge fund Access International Advisors, was found dead early Tuesday in his office in Manhattan, after losing as much as $1.4 billion that had been invested with Bernard L. Madoff, the money manager who has been accused of running a $50 billion Ponzi scheme.

La Tribune reported that Mr. de la Villehuchet had been trying to recover the money that Access International raised in Europe and invested through Mr. Madoff’s business.

Luxalpha, a $1.4 billion Luxembourg-based fund sold across Europe, invested in Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities. Access International last week called Mr. Madoff’s arrest a shocking development in a note to investors. Investors in the fund included a unit of Rothschild and several clients of the Swiss bank UBS.

UBS had been the custodian and administrator of the fund until this year when Access International took over. No one answered the phone at Access International’s New York office. UBS has stated that Mr. Madoff was not on the bank’s wealth management recommended list as a direct investment option but it produced and sold funds containing the investment manager’s products. UBS would establish fund of funds structures at clients’ requests. Source: NY Times

To echo the words of Jamaican superstar Buju Banton's song, I will say of Mr. Madoff:

Murderer! Blood is on your shoulders
Kill I today you cannot kill I tomorrow
Murderer! Your insides must be hollow
How does it feel to take the life of another
Yes, you can hide from man but not your conscience
You eat the bread of sorrow
Drink the wine of violence
Allowed yourself to be conquered by the serpent
Why did you disobey the first commandment
Walk through the valley I fear no pestilence
God is my witness and He is my evidence
Lift up my eyes from wence cometh help
You will never escape this judgement

Of course, some parts of the lyrics are in patois, the broken language of Jamaica. The message is the same, Bernard Madoff is no better than a murderer for what he has done to these people.

Abraham K. Biggs, 19, Commits Suicide Live on Webcam

Abraham K. Biggs, 19, committed suicide in front of a live webcam after being encouraged by people online. According to media reports, the Florida teenager, who went by the screen names "CandyJunkie" and “Mr Biggs”, told users on a bodybuilding forum he would be committing suicide that night and invited them to watch the live video.

The forum moderators allegedly ignored the post – assuming it was a prank – while other users posted insults and even egged him on. The teen used the "lifecasting" website Justin.tv – designed to let users share the minutiae of their everyday lives – to stream footage from his bedroom.

Biggs was seen taking several pills before lying on the bed with his back to the camera. He didn't move, and users claim they realised it was serious a few hours later when they saw he wasn't breathing. Moderators then traced Biggs's location and informed authorities. The webcam was still streaming live footage of the teen's body as police entered the room. A laser-guided weapon was pointed at the body and an object was thrown at the bed. Authorities then appeared on the video as they approached the teen's body, checked for a pulse, and covered up the webcam.

Justin.tv chief executive officer Michael Seibel told online video news website NewTeeVee.com the service relied on users to report inappropriate content.

"As for the broadcaster incident last night, we don’t comment on individual videos, however, our policy prohibits inappropriate content on Justin.tv," he said. "We rely on the community to flag videos that they feel are objectionable. Once a video is flagged, it is reviewed and quickly removed from the system if it violates our Terms of Use."

When the drama unfolded, according to News.com.au, some forum users allegedly began deleting their posts after the incident and an official thread – including Biggs' full name – was posted by moderators. This is truly a sad turn of events.

The teen described himself as a "good hearted guy" on his social networking profile. "I care a lot about my friends and my family and I would do almost anything for them," he said. "I am very goal oriented, I know what I want to do with my life and I am working towards it."

Biggs last posted on MySpace three days before he committed suicide in a wall post about taking sleeping pills. A week ago he left a message about closing a chapter in his life and apologized to his friends for his behavior. Biggs, who had reportedly been discussing his suicide on the forums, also posted a suicide note on a bodybuilding forum, which has since been taken down, in which he wrote "I hate myself and I hate living." "I have let everyone down and I feel as though I will never change or never improve," Biggs apparently wrote in the posting. "I am in love with a girl and I know that I am not good enough for her. I have come to believe that my life has all been meaningless. I keep trying and I keep failing. I have thought about and attempted suicide many times in the past."

I have always believed that when someone threatens to commit suicide, they usually will at some point. It is unconscionable that the forum users who egged him on did so and failed to see the gravity of the situation. This young man was obviously crying out for help and he was left to his own vices. That is a shame. He was obviously wrestling with some serious psychological issues. We cannot continue to ignore people when they are crying out for help.

Abraham K. Biggs, 19, Commits Suicide Live on Webcam

Abraham K. Biggs, 19, committed suicide in front of a live webcam after being encouraged by people online. According to media reports, the Florida teenager, who went by the screen names "CandyJunkie" and “Mr Biggs”, told users on a bodybuilding forum he would be committing suicide that night and invited them to watch the live video.

The forum moderators allegedly ignored the post – assuming it was a prank – while other users posted insults and even egged him on. The teen used the "lifecasting" website Justin.tv – designed to let users share the minutiae of their everyday lives – to stream footage from his bedroom.

Biggs was seen taking several pills before lying on the bed with his back to the camera. He didn't move, and users claim they realised it was serious a few hours later when they saw he wasn't breathing. Moderators then traced Biggs's location and informed authorities. The webcam was still streaming live footage of the teen's body as police entered the room. A laser-guided weapon was pointed at the body and an object was thrown at the bed. Authorities then appeared on the video as they approached the teen's body, checked for a pulse, and covered up the webcam.

Justin.tv chief executive officer Michael Seibel told online video news website NewTeeVee.com the service relied on users to report inappropriate content.

"As for the broadcaster incident last night, we don’t comment on individual videos, however, our policy prohibits inappropriate content on Justin.tv," he said. "We rely on the community to flag videos that they feel are objectionable. Once a video is flagged, it is reviewed and quickly removed from the system if it violates our Terms of Use."

When the drama unfolded, according to News.com.au, some forum users allegedly began deleting their posts after the incident and an official thread – including Biggs' full name – was posted by moderators. This is truly a sad turn of events.

The teen described himself as a "good hearted guy" on his social networking profile. "I care a lot about my friends and my family and I would do almost anything for them," he said. "I am very goal oriented, I know what I want to do with my life and I am working towards it."

Biggs last posted on MySpace three days before he committed suicide in a wall post about taking sleeping pills. A week ago he left a message about closing a chapter in his life and apologized to his friends for his behavior. Biggs, who had reportedly been discussing his suicide on the forums, also posted a suicide note on a bodybuilding forum, which has since been taken down, in which he wrote "I hate myself and I hate living." "I have let everyone down and I feel as though I will never change or never improve," Biggs apparently wrote in the posting. "I am in love with a girl and I know that I am not good enough for her. I have come to believe that my life has all been meaningless. I keep trying and I keep failing. I have thought about and attempted suicide many times in the past."

I have always believed that when someone threatens to commit suicide, they usually will at some point. It is unconscionable that the forum users who egged him on did so and failed to see the gravity of the situation. This young man was obviously crying out for help and he was left to his own vices. That is a shame. He was obviously wrestling with some serious psychological issues. We cannot continue to ignore people when they are crying out for help.