A student plunged nearly 40 feet to his death from one of Rome’s most famous bridges in front of horrified tourists when he fell over the edge while taking a selfie.
Peter Reithofer, 23, died instantly when he smashed into a concrete support beneath the Ponte Garibaldi bridge over the Tiber River, on Monday, 13th November.
Police believe the maths student had leaned out too far to take a snap of himself on the 19th-century bridge and overbalanced at around 6pm.
Reithofer who was an Austrian national, but was born in Singapore, had been attending Sapienza University after academic studies in the city of Achen, in the German state of North Rhine-Westhphalia.
Local media says friends described the 23-year-old maths student as ‘very introverted’.
He had reportedly been staying at a hotel in Rome, but was about to move in with flatmates within the next few weeks.
Before the fall he had met up with two friends from Germany before he headed towards the bridge and stopped briefly to take a few snaps.
Having witnessed the fall, shocked bystanders immediately alerted the police and called emergency crews. However, he was proclaimed dead on the spot.
Since he did not have his ID with him at the time, police identified the victim through his mobile which was found right next to his lifeless body.
A police investigation is ongoing.
The historic bridge was completed in 1888 and named by architect Angelo Vescovali in honour of Giuseppe Garibaldi, one of the fathers of Italian unification.
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Story By: Georgina Jedikovska, Sub-Editor: Georgina Jedikovska, Agency: Newsflash
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