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May 25, 2011
Frenchman suffocated himself with gas in bag
By Elena Chong
A FRENCHMAN took his own life by suffocating himself with a jumbo Ziploc bag that had helium gas pumped into it, a coroner's court heard yesterday.
Prior to his death, Loic Erwan Francois Marie Martenot was a general manager of Deliciae, a restaurant and hospitality management firm here, where he had been working since May last year.
The lifeless body of the 41-year-old was found slumped over a chair in the storage room of his Duxton Hill office by his boss and close friend Olivier Henri Bendel on Nov 29 last year.
Mr Bendel, 39, a Singapore permanent resident, suspected something amiss when he arrived at the office that morning and saw a 'Do not enter' sign on the glass door of the room.
He later found a handwritten note from Martenot addressed to him, expressing admiration, trust and regret. Three other letters were also left behind by the dead man for his wife, two children and estranged family.
Investigations showed that Martenot had been suffering from depression since he was 10 years old.
Read the full story in Thursday's edition of The Straits Times.
