Sarco Suicide Pod Controversy | Know your meme

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Overview

The Sarco Suicide Pod Controversyalso known as the Sarco suicide capsule incident refers to the death by suicide of a 64-year-old American woman who allegedly used the Sarco suicide capsule during a forest retreat in Switzerland in September 2024. Last Resort, the company behind the suicide capsule, claims the woman died peacefully after using the device as designed, but a forensic examination, revealed in late October 2024, claims her neck showed strangulation marks. Swiss police have arrested several people linked to the use of the futuristic-looking capsule, including the CEO of the company behind the capsule, Florian Willet, who saw her die and is reportedly the only one who was in the room with the woman . The incident gained attention on X/Twitter, Instagram and Reddit, as people began creating theories about the woman’s death.

Background

On September 25, 2024, the BBC reported that several people were arrested in Switzerland after a 64-year-old American woman died in Sarco’s suicide capsule, a euthanasia device that contains a canister of liquid nitrogen to commit suicide by asphyxiation by inert gas. According to the article, they have arrested several people on suspicion of “incitement to and complicity in suicide”.

On the same day, the YouTube channel StratNewsGlobal posted a video explaining the first use of the suicide capsule called Sarco. The video (seen below) received approximately 15,000 views and 111 likes in three months.

Developments

Intentional murder investigation

On October 29, 2024, an investigation into the American woman’s suicide raised suspicions of “intentional murder” after chief prosecutor Peter Sticher suggested in court that the 64-year-old may have been strangled, as her body was found with strangulation marks. Dr. Florian Willet, the president of Swiss Sarco operator The Last Resort, the company responsible for the suicide capsule used by the American, was reportedly the only person in the room with her. He remains in custody while the investigation continues.

The Sun’s official YouTube channel posted a video about the ongoing investigation (seen below), which received more than 5,000 views and 103 likes in a week.

Online comments

The controversy sparked numerous comments online as Swiss police revealed more information about the pod’s use. For example, on November 2, 2024, The tweet (seen below) racked up more than 1,200 likes and 27 reposts per day.

The incident also sparked discussions on Reddit, when user insomnimax_99 posted a news article about the pod to the r/europe subreddit, which racked up around 12,000 upvotes and 832 comments in a week.