‘Happy home and good family’ for boy in suspected suicide

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

EIGHT-year-old Mariano Chery disagreed with his family over what to watch on TV before retreating to his room on Thursday, where he appeared to have taken his own life, according to his grieving mother.

“I wish I could’ve catch him in time,” she told The Tribune yesterday. “But like I say, that’s God’s plan.”

Mariano, a third-grade student at TG Glover, was found unresponsive in his bedroom with a belt around his neck, hanging from the security bars of a window. 

EMS was called and transported him to the hospital, where he died shortly after arrival.

The boy’s suspected suicide stunned many and prompted wide-ranging discourse on social media.

His mother of four sat quietly and alone in her home yesterday, with the front door open and a wreath hanging on a wall outside as workers moved across the street during The Tribune’s visit.

Nothing, she said, made her believe her son would take his own life, as he was not depressed, but always smiled and appeared happy.

The stay-at-home mother, who requested anonymity, said she hasn’t been sleeping, often thinking about her “full of life” son, who was advanced for his age and aspired to become a doctor.

“I love all of my kids, but we had a different bond because out of all four of my kids, he always complimenting me,” she said. “If I dress up, he say ‘Mummy you look so nice, be safe.’ Or, he would come rub my foot or when I cook, he’d say ‘you does cook the best food’.”

“Listen, I always would sit down and say ‘God’ like something too good to be true. I used to say, man how this boy could be knowing everything like this. I mean, he was advanced.”

She also addressed the social media chatter surrounding his death, emphasising that anyone who knows her understands her love for her children and that she would never harm them.

“You have persons saying check the mother, but why would I hang my child?” she asked. “I push him out. Ain’t nobody help me push him out. I push him out myself. You know how much jobs I quit to stay home to watch my children myself? 

“Mariano come from a happy home. You could tell them that. He came from a good home and good family.”

His mother showed The Tribune the family pictures decorating her home and Mariano’s shared bedroom. 

His school clothes hung on the rack, a painful reminder of his potential.

His mother said moments before he died, he finished eating a seafood boil and was having fun with his three siblings “as usual”.  

His older brother was celebrating his 15th birthday that day, and they were all watching TV.

“There wasn’t an argument,” she said. “Mariano just wanted to watch YouTube, so I said Mariano, let’s watch one more movie. He said ‘mummy, I don’t want to watch movie. Y’all never let me watch what I want to watch.”

She recalled that Mariano told them, “Okay, man,” handed over the remote, and left. She thought he went to make cereal. 

Less than ten minutes later, she asked her 11-year-old son to check on Mariano, leading to the grim discovery. 

She said her 11-year-old is taking his death hard and often tells her: “Mummy, I miss Mariano.”

As she replayed videos of Mariano playing and dancing with his siblings on her phone, the mother said she doesn’t know what led her young son to take his own life, describing him as a “star student” who was well-loved by his friends and family.

However, she believes social media may have played a role, noting that her son enjoyed watching TikTok clips, YouTube videos, and playing Roblox.

“With social media, you’ll never know what these kids thinking,” she said. “You’ll be surprised.”

The mother said the incident has been a learning lesson for her, prompting her to limit her children’s time on their devices and encourage them to engage more with the church and other recreational activities.

“They’re coping, but you could see they’re sad, but don’t want to say,” she said, adding that police are providing psychological help for the family.

She also had this message to parents: “Make memories with your children. Watch what they watch on social media because the kids may seem happy, but they like to try things.”