Defendant Attempts Suicide in Jail, Reportedly Attacker from Spisska Stara Ves

Bratislava, February 21 (TASR) - An 18-year-old defendant charged with premeditated murder has twice attempted suicide while in custody, and he is being continuously monitored by camera with specialised staff keeping tabs on his mental health, TASR has learnt from Katarina Bednarova from the Prison and Judicial Guard Corps (ZVJS). According to television channel Markiza, the suspect is the student accused of carrying out a knife attack at a school in Spisska Stara Ves in January. The defendant first attempted suicide in prison in Bratislava on the evening of January 29. "While they were monitoring the defendant, staff noticed him approach the inner cell bars and begin wrapping bed linen around his head. No external injuries were observed on the defendant when they came to the cell," said Bednarova. The man, in a stabilised condition, was escorted to a civilian health-care facility for a medical examination and subsequently to the hospital for defendants and convicts at a prison in Trencin. The man attempted suicide again on the morning of January 30, when staff noticed him wrapping bed linen around his neck. "At the time, the accused had one end of a bed sheet wrapped around his neck, with the other tied to the inner bars of the cell. The officers physically restrained the accused, preventing him from carrying out his intention to hang himself," said Bednarova. According to her, the doctor on duty conducted a medical examination and found no visible external injuries. She added that the incident was reported to the supervising prosecutor and law-enforcement authorities. The victims of the knife attack that took place at the grammar school in Spisska Stara Ves on January 16 were two women, aged 18 and 51, a student and the school's deputy headteacher. Another student was injured. The police have charged the suspect, an 18-year-old student, with premeditated murder. lin/df