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Minnapolis (AP)

Minn. man suspected of encouraging suicides

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A Minnesota nurse who authorities say got his kicks by visiting Internet suicide chat rooms and encouraging depressed people to kill themselves is under investigation in at least two deaths.

Authorities say 47-year-old William Melchert-Dinkel posed as a female nurse and feigned compassion for those he chatted with. He then allegedly offered step-by-step instructions on how to take their lives.

Authorities say he is tied to the suicides of an 18-year-old university student in Canada in 2007 and a 32-year-old British man in 2005.

While the victims' families are frustrated no charges have been filed, legal experts say prosecuting such a case would be difficult. In the meantime, he has been stripped of his nursing license.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)