Teen Committed Suicide by Letting Cobra Bite Him, Autopsy Finds

A Texas medical office has ruled that a teen’s July death from snakebites was suicide, according to the examiner’s report.

The 18-year-old was found dead in an SUV with “several bites” from a deadly monocle cobra on each arm, KVUE reports. The autopsy found that Thompson first had bites on his left shoulder, consistent with a right-handed person intentionally receiving a snakebite. The venom would have led to paralysis and death in as few as 30 minutes.

The teen loved reptiles and had a “history of suicidal ideation,” according to the medical report. He was found in the SUV with its door open and an empty cobra container, though the snake was gone. Animal control conducted a large-scale search until the snake was found dead by a road.

[KVUE]