Police in Los Angeles have confirmed that a man died downtown over the weekend after using a sharp implement to cut off his own penis.
A Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson told Us Weekly on Monday, March 9, that the bloody incident unfolded not far from the Crypto.com Arena and the Los Angeles Convention Center on Saturday, March 7.
Calls to the 911 dispatch center started coming in just after 3:30 a.m., according to the LAPD spokesperson.
Officers pulled up to the intersection of Figueroa Street and Pico Boulevard, where they found the self-mutilated man unresponsive on a nearby sidewalk, in front of a business’ driveway, according to the spokesperson.
Police said that the man bled out at the scene and could not be saved. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene.
LAPD officers set up a white tent over the body in an attempt to block the horrific scene.
Photographers from OnSceneTV still managed to capture images of the body, which appear to show that there was a dark blood stain around the man’s groin — and a pool of blood around his body on the sidewalk.
TMZ is reporting that the man, who has not been identified or even described by police, also sliced his throat, stabbed himself and attempted to cut off one of his arms.
The New York Post is further reporting that clothes were seen scattered across the ground near where the man was found. A journalist who was at the scene told the Post the man had taken off his clothing and started walking toward a nearby 7/11 when he collapsed.
It is unclear what the man used to harm himself. Police did not provide an estimate on his age.
A motive will likely never be known, but an autopsy is being performed to determine if the man was on illicit drugs at the time he died.
The LAPD is investigating the man’s death and ask that anyone who may have information about what the man was doing prior to castrating himself.
To submit anonymous tips to the LAPD, you can call 800-222-TIPS (8477) or visit Los Angeles Crime Stoppers. You can also send a text message to the LAPD by texting CRIMES (274637), followed by your message. Start your message with “LAPD” to ensure that it is routed to the correct department.
The human penis contains a complex network of veins and arteries, according to Healthline.com.
When he cut off his penis, the man severed the penile artery as well as the deep dorsal vein (which runs along the midline and collects blood from the glans and the corpora cavernosa), the main bulbourethral vein and the internal pudendal vein.
If bleeding from a severed penis is not stopped or controlled, the victim can die in a matter of minutes.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
