Jacintha Saldanha Hung Herself, Slashed Wrists After Royal Prank
Jacintha Saldanha, the British nurse found dead after being duped by two Australian DJs pretending to be Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles, apparently hung herself in the nurse's quarters of King Edward VII Hospital last Friday, a coroner's report revealed.
Coroner's officer Lynda Martindill said nurse Jacintha Saldanha was found in the nurses' quarters by a colleague hanging by a scarf. Saldanha was found dead on Friday, Dec. 7, two days after answering the phone at King Edward VII Hospital in London and putting through 2Day FM DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian to speak to an on-duty nurse
The 46-year old mother of two took Greig and Christian to be Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles when she transferred the Australian DJs over to another nurse who informed them about the condition of Duchess Kate Middleton, who had been suffering from acute morning sickness after news of her pregnancy with Prince William made headlines around the world.
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Police detective chief inspector James Harman added that Saldanha also had self-inflicted injuries to her wrist, The Associated Press revealed. Three notes were also found in her room, addressing her family, although their contents were not revealed. Police, who are continuing the investigation into the case, have said that there were no suspicious circumstances and believe the nurse killed herself.
Meanwhile, Greig and Christian have spoken out publicly about the tragedy, and have said that they are "gutted, shattered, heartbroken" by the incident. The DJs were taken off the air by 2Day FM and the radio station's annual Christmas party was cancelled out of respect for the nurse. Southern Cross Austereo, the company that owns 2Day FM, has said that it will donate $500,000 to a fund set up for the family.
King Edward VII Hospital has strongly condemned the prank phone call, although it has denied that it punished Saldanha in any way before she took her own life.
"What the chairman of the hospital said to me was that there are inquiries going on in the hospital…That is not sufficient for the family. There are unexplained circumstances. The family want to know everything. All the facts, fully and clearly," said Labor MP (Member of Parliament) Keith Vaz, calling for a full inquiry into the nurse's death. Vaz is representing Saldanha's family,
Vaz has said that the family is a "close knit Catholic" one, and will now have to face their first Christmas without the wife and mother.
