Oscar Barbosa, teen commits suicide by piranha
A man in South America committed suicide by jumping out of a canoe into piranha infested waters.
The Sun reports that fisherman Oscar Barbosa, 18, bled to death leaping into a Bolivian river full of piranha, suffering dozens of bites to his throat and face.
Local police reported on the incident at Bolivia’s Yata River.
Officials claim that Barbosa, from from Rosario del Yata in the north east of the country, meant to kill himself or may have been intoxicated.
The reports say the young man knew the river well and would have been aware that it is swarming with red piranhas at this time of year.
The 14-inch fish have razor sharp teeth and hunt in packs to strip their prey of flesh. They are known to devour large snakes and even jaguars in minutes.
Fatal attacks on humans are rare. But swimmers at a river beach in Brazil were attacked by hundreds of piranhas in September.
photo/ AllNikArt
