A 47-year-old theater male nurse at Kaoma District Hospital has allegedly committed suicide by injecting himself with a painkiller used in theaters.

Western Province Commissioner of Police, Mukuka Chileshe, who confirmed the incident in a statement to ZANIS today, named the deceased as Naphy Banda, a resident of Mulamba Compound in Kaoma district. 

Mr Chileshe stated that the deceased was discovered dead in the hospital’s theater department at around 20:00 hours on Saturday, May 11, 2024 by his colleagues who were attending to a patient in another theater room. 

He disclosed that preliminary investigations suggest that the deceased injected himself with Lignocaine medication, a pain killer commonly used in theaters, and later died.

Mr Chileshe stated that further investigations revealed that the deceased was having marital disputes which could have led to him committing suicide.

  “The deceased body was discovered by colleagues attending to a patient in another theater room and no physical injuries were observed, but a used needle and bottles of Lignocaine and Diazepam chemicals were found nearby.

“Acting on this matter, officers visited the scene and findings were that the deceased person was found lying on the bed with the body facing upwards with a drip inserted on his left hand. No physical injuries were observed on his body. Officers observed blood stains on the floor, a used needle and bottles of 

Lignocaine and Diazepam chemicals left on the table,” he explained. 

 According to the health personnel, Lignocaine chemical if inserted into the vein can kill a person while the Diazepam chemical can make a person go to sleep. 

The body has been deposited at the Kaoma District Hospital mortuary, awaiting a post-mortem examination to determine the exact cause of death.