A 17-year-old boy had committed suicide due to a bullying incident involving two of his classmates.
On 2 March 2020 around 6pm, he took the plunge from a four-storey high carpark of a mall in Kulai, Malaysia.
FAMILY WAS UNAWARE ABOUT THE BULLYING
The deceased, Jiang Junzhe had his bank card stolen, chilli poured into his bag, chair thrown away and was cursed at by the two bullies, his mum Lin Li Yun said.
The family only found out that their son was being bullied by his friends after the tragedy took place.
It was said that Jiang had confided in them about his ordeal while chatting.
Back then, she noticed that her son had been packing food to school but did not think anything much of it as he said that he was trying to lose weight.
A classmate also revealed that Jiang had been a target of the bullies ever since he transferred into a new school in January this year.
He faced constant bullying because he refused to join the bullies' secret gang and did not retaliate.
The classmate said that even the day before Jiang's suicide, they played basketball together.
"He told me this is the last time we would be playing basketball together. I didn't feel anything was amiss at that time."
A day before Jiang's death, he even asked if he could change his class.
While the principal knew of the bullying, upon the teacher's further inquiry, Jiang changed his words and said that everything was fine.
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TEEN BULLIED AND COMMITTED SUICIDE: FAMILY CLARIFIES THAT IT IS NOT DEPRESSION
Jiang had posted some Instagram stories just before his death.
"Thank you everyone. I wouldn't be where I am today without you, but I am unable to hold on any longer," Jiang wrote in one of them.
"Let's meet again in the afterlife," he shared in another of his posts.
With Jiang's death, his family held a press conference to clarify that their son did not suffer from depression, and claimed that it was the bullying that caused his death.
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BULLIES ATTENDED FUNERAL OF DECEASED
The funeral took place at Johor, Malaysia and the two bullies were said to have attended and accompanied by their parents.
They were seen kneeling before Jiang's coffin as they apologised.
It was reported that Jiang's parents had lashed out at the bullies while their parents were present.
"What would you do if it was your son that died today? You forced my son with no choice but to end his life," his mum said.
Jiang's parents also reprimanded the bullies' parents for failing to bring them up well.
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This article was first published in theAsianparent.