66-yr-old French national, settled in Mahabs, ends life

MAHABALIPURAM: A 66-year-old French national who had settled in Mahabalipuram 25 years ago, died by suicide on Wednesday. The deceased, Ronald, was suffering from depression.

Ronald, who had come to India 25 years ago to visit the tourist attractions in Mahabalipuram, settled down in the town and married a local woman named Stella Mary.

The couple had two sons and Ronald started his own restaurant business for tourists. Following the pandemic, as no tourists were visiting the town for the past three years, Ronald’s business faced a huge loss.He fell into depression owing to this and was undergoing treatment for it at a private hospital.

“However, on Wednesday, he went to sit and watch the sunset at the beach and all of a sudden is said to have flung himself into the ocean before anyone could raise an alarm,” police said.

Within a few hours, Ronald’s body washed ashore behind a star hotel in the neighbourhood.

On information, the Mahabalipuram has registered a case and sent the body for an autopsy to the Chengalpattu government hospital.