At least one sick prick off the streets

[Papa_Complex]

Justice for Brampton teen’s family 3 years after suicide

Amy Dempsey Staff Reporter

An ex-nurse who posed as a woman in an Internet chat room and encouraged 18-year-old Nadia Kajouji of Brampton to kill herself was found guilty Tuesday of aiding her suicide.

William Melchert-Dinkel, 48, relentlessly pushed the depressed and vulnerable young woman and a man from England to end their lives, a Minnesota judge ruled.

The young woman was studying at Carleton University in Ottawa when she jumped into a frozen river and drowned in 2008. Her grieving family has been waiting for justice without much hope.

“Honestly, until today — until maybe three hours ago — I thought he was going to get away with it,” Mohamed Kajouji said Tuesday evening.

The father burst into tears as he spoke of the pain he lives with daily, surrounded by memories: the photos of his smiling daughter still sitting on top of the television, her bedroom as she left it, the neighbour who looks like her. Last Wednesday marked three years since he lost Nadia.

Kajouji said he takes comfort knowing that justice will be served and hopes the judge comes down hard in sentencing.

“As far as I’m concerned, he’s an animal. I don’t know how he can live with himself.”

Melchert-Dinkel of Minnesota was charged in April with aiding suicide under a rarely used state law that carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of $30,000 (U.S.).

He declined a jury trial and left his fate to a judge, who issued his verdict Tuesday. Sentencing is scheduled for May 4.

Prosecutors said Melchert-Dinkel was obsessed with suicide and hanging. He sought out potential victims on the Internet, posing as a female nurse and feigning compassion for people he met in suicide chat rooms. Then he offered them step-by-step instructions on how to kill themselves.

Melchert-Dinkel tried to persuade Kajouji to hang herself in front of a webcam.

“Most important is the placement of the noose on the neck,” he wrote in one web chat, posing as a woman and using the screen name “cami.”

“Knot behind the left ear and rope across the carotid is very important for instant unconsciousness and death.”

He was also found guilty of encouraging the suicide of Mark Drybough, who hanged himself in 2005 at his home in Coventry, England.

Prosecutors said Melchert-Dinkel acknowledged participating in online chats about suicide with as many as 20 people and entering into fake suicide pacts with about 10 of them, five of whom he believed killed themselves.

Melchert-Dinkel told police he did it for the “thrill of the chase,” said Rice County Attorney Paul Beaumaster.

Defence attorney Terry Watkins argued the victims were predisposed to committing suicide and his client didn’t sway them by making statements online.

Judge Thomas Neuville said that argument was irrelevant.

The investigation into Melchert-Dinkel’s activity began in March 2008 when an anti-suicide activist in Britain contacted Minnesota authorities to report an online predator using deception to manipulate people to commit suicide.

Melchert-Dinkel has been allowed to remain free under certain conditions. Among them, he is not allowed to use the Internet without approval.

Nadia was cheerful young woman who loved her family, playing the guitar and ice skating.

She was a bright student who wanted to be a lawyer, but she grew depressed when she moved away from home. The increased academic pressure and a breakup added to her strain. She had begun seeing a campus counsellor and taking antidepressants.

An online posting made days before her death revealed the extent of her depression.

“I have not attempted suicide in the past because I am terrified of failing — the attention it would garner,” she wrote.

“I just want a quick out.”

After his sister’s death, Marc Kajouji became involved with the suicide prevention organization Your Life Counts. He hopes Nadia’s story will make people more aware of the tragedy of suicide and perhaps save lives.

“Talk to your friends, talk to your family, as hard as it is,” Kajouji tells people who find themselves experiencing the same feelings as his sister. “It’s important to reach out for help and not just try to battle this on your own because it is very tough.”