American Man Kills Himself In Court Room

It’s never easy to pay the piper, but choosing suicide over a 4-year prison sentence seems a little drastic.

During a sentencing for drug possession charges in Taiwan, an American man stabbed himself in the neck, just moments after his sentencing.

41 year old Tyrel Martin Marhanka, a longtime resident of Taiwan with a Taiwanese wife and two young children, reportedly yelled, “I don’t want to live anymore,” before drawing out two sharp metal objects and slashing his neck.

According to a report in the Taipei Times, Marhanka is believed to have dismantled a pair of scissors and hidden them in a magazine to bypass the courtroom metal detectors.

A judge had sentenced Marhanka to four years in prison for the possession of poppy seeds and other narcotics and growing marijuana, which he said were for his own personal use.

Although he was rushed to a local hospital, he did not survive.

The court, in Chengu County near the western city of Taichung, issued a statement that read: “We deeply regret that Tyrel Martin Marhanka killed himself during the sentencing,” according to Agence France-Presse. “He was cooperative during the investigation and the trial. His attitude was mild and he did not show any signs that he would [kill himself].”