Singaporean teen Jonathan Chow, 17, wanted to show off his jumping skills on Friday last week and have it load up to Snapchat.
The stunt, however, took a horrible turn as the 5th floor ledge he jumped into — which he and his friend Ruth thought was concrete — gave in.
The incident took place at Orchard Central mall in the city state. Passersby who found Chow's body on the ground tried to revive him, but failed.
Ruth, a friend of Chow, was recording the stunt on a phone camera. She told the local media Chow wanted her to take a video of him leaping over the mall's railing to a platform below.
The plasterboard ledge where the teen's body went through. — Facebook
“We both thought the ledge was made of concrete, but when he jumped, he fell straight through,” Ruth was quoted by local a news outlets as saying. “I knew it was dangerous, but before I could stop him, he already jumped over. I swear I wanted to jump over too — but I knew it was too late.”
The platform they thought was "concrete" turned out to be made of plasterbaord.
Her friend’s final words reportedly before he jumped were: “Help me take a Snapchat video and I’ll jump.”
Surveillance footage released by Orchard Central shows Ruth taking a smartphone out to film the stunt and her shocked reaction when Chow fell.
The tragic moment has sparked a heated debate on social media, with netizens divided over who is to blame for the 17-year-old’s death.
Chow's father, Matthew, was shocked to find out about his son’s death last Friday, but he did not blame Ruth for what occurred.
Singporean media reported that Chow had been studying in Australia, but returned home to Singapore in December to await his national service. He was cremated on Thursday.
