LAFAYETTE, IN — A 27-year-old West Lafayette man called 911 from a cemetery on Friday morning so that after he shot himself, someone would find his body, police said.
A deputy coroner called to the suspected suicide scene Friday morning in Boniface Cemetery at 2581 Schuyler Ave. noticed that a sheet covering Austin Clingerman was rising and falling with his breaths, Tippecanoe County Coroner Carrie Costello said.
Clingerman called 911 about 6:50 a.m. and told dispatchers his name, his location and that he intended to kill himself, Tippecanoe County Sheriff Bob Goldsmith said. Clingerman told dispatchers he called because he wanted his body to be found.
Deputies and paramedics rushed to the cemetery, where they found Clingerman, Goldsmith said.
“Upon arrival, the deputy coroner observed signs of life and immediately notified medical personnel already on scene that the individual required urgent medical attention,” Costello said. “The individual was then transported to IU Health Arnett Hospital, where he was later pronounced deceased at 10:50 a.m.”
Anyone who is in crisis may call 988, a 24/7 crisis hotline.
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: West Lafayette man alerts dispatchers to suicide plan in cemetery
Reporting by Ron Wilkins, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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