Two cousins found dead in suicide-hit area of Bridgend
Police believe the two deaths are not linked to previous suicides in the area
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Saturday, 16, Feb 2008 08:01
Two cousins have been found dead in an area where numerous suicides have taken place over the last year.
The area of Bridgend, South Wales, has seen 14 people take their own lives since 2007, as fears are expressed about the presence of a suicide cult in the area.
Police have said that the deaths of 15-year-old Nathaniel Pritchard and Kelly Stephenson, 20, were not linked to previous incidents of suicide.
Mr Pritchard was found in an attic with serious injuries on Wednesday evening. He died of the wounds he sustained while “harming himself” two days later. Meanwhile Ms Stephenson was found dead while on holiday with her family in Folkestone, Kent.
Relatives of 20-year-old Ms Stephenson said she had hanged herself from a shower rail. They confirmed that she had been informed about her cousin’s death.
Ms Stephenson, who was an aspiring footballer, was friends with two boys who took their own lives last year. Speaking about the incident and the situation in the area, a relative of the two cousins said: "Kelly was friends with both boys but whether this had anything to do with what has happened we just don't know.
"We just don't understand what is going on in Bridgend. Kelly and Nathaniel were both brilliant kids with good futures ahead of them. We would never have thought in a million years that they were capable of anything like this."
Her team coach Tony Morgan told the BBC: "It is a shock and another tragedy involving a young person.
"She had only played one game for us - I couldn't pick her for this weekend because she was going away on holiday. It is a shock... everyone at the club will be shocked," he added.