Second suspected suicide in Hesse's Ministry of Finance 

After the death of the Hessian finance minister Thomas Schäfer, another employee of the finance ministry was found dead. 

• After the surprising death of Hesse's Finance Minister Thomas Schäfer (CDU), there was apparently another suicide in the Ministry of Finance
• A senior official was found "lifeless in his office". 
• The closer circumstances are so far unclear. 

After the suspected suicide of the Hessian finance minister Thomas Schäfer (CDU), another senior employee of the Hessian finance department apparently committed suicide , according to information from the editorial network Germany (RND). The civil servant was "found lifeless in his office on Thursday morning, according to police reports that he committed suicide", quotes the RND (Friday expenditure) an internal email from the Secretary of State for Finance, Martin Worms, to the employees of the Ministry of Finance in Wiesbaden. 

After the death of Thomas Schäfer (CDU): Another employee commits suicide 

The closer circumstances and backgrounds are so far unclear, the RND further reported. At the end of March, Finance Minister Schäfer's death caused nationwide dismay. Prime Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU) had spoken of a desperate act in connection with the financial management of the Corona crisis. 

We are stunned. The CDU Hessen mourns the loss of Dr. Thomas Schafer. We were shocked to hear the news of his sudden and unexpected death. Our thoughts are with his family and relatives. pic.twitter.com/G7WAj8znTN

"I have to assume that these worries overwhelmed him," said Bouffier at the time. The 54-year-old had apparently seen no way out. Schäfer, who was believed to be Bouffier's successor, was found dead on an ICE line in the Main-Taunus district.

Hessen: Second suicide in the Ministry of Finance 

The police in Hesse carried out extensive investigations into the death of Thomas  Schäfer during the course of the day and, after interviewing witnesses, the situation on site, as well as technical and criminal-scientific evaluations and investigations, came to the conclusion that suicide by Thomas Schäfer * can be assumed. 

Michael Boddenberg was later sworn in as the country's new finance minister at a special session of the Hessian state parliament. Michael Boddenberg, 60, has been chairman of the CDU parliamentary group since 2014 . Before that he was Hessian Minister of State for Federal Affairs and Plenipotentiary of the State of Hesse to the Federal Government. He is considered a confidante of the Prime Minister of Hesse Volker Bouffier.

Note on reporting after suicide 

In general, we do not report suicides so that such cases do not encourage potential imitators. Reporting takes place only when the circumstances receive special public attention. If you or a person you know is suffering from an existential life crisis or depression, please contact the telephone counseling service on 0800-1110111.

Help with depression and other psychological emergency situations is also available at www.deutsche-depressionshilfe.de. Help is also available from the Frankfurt crisis service at 069-611375. Further information can be found on the website www.bsf-frankfurt.de.

marv with AFP

* fr.de is part of the Ippen-Digital editors network