A suicide jumper has killed a 5-year-old girl in Busan, South Korea after landing on her as he crashed to the ground from the 11th floor of an apartment building on Wednesday.
The tragic incident has stunned the east-Asian country and made worldwide headlines.
The suicide jumper was an unnamed 39-year-old man, who seemingly decided to take his own life by jumping from the 11th floor of an apartment building in the southeastern port city.
The jumper died instantly, however, as he landed he crushed a 5-year-old girl who was walking below, having just exited from the building with her parents.
The girl suffered horrific injuries and was rushed to a local hospital. She reportedly suffered brain injuries as well as multiple broken bones. Medical officials were unable to revive her and she was later pronounced dead.
Numerous reports from eye-witnesses have claimed that the man did jump from the building of his own accord and at the moment no suspicion of foul play has been announced. However, authorities have said that they have not found any suicide note and cannot explain why the man decided to jump.
Authorities have confirmed that their investigations are ongoing, and officials have only been able to speak on the condition of anonymity as the situation is still developing.
The horrific incident has stunned locals and people around the world, with many condemning the tragedy as a terrible "waste of life."
The incident has once again highlighted the increasing problem of suicide in South Korea, which now has a suicide rate of more than 2.5 times any other well-developed country. Some reports claim that South Korea now sees about 50 suicides every single day.
