TRIGGER WARNING: This post contains information about suicide, which may be triggering to some.
The family of a Pakistani teen living in England is grappling with the reality that she took her own life. Qudsiyah Mahmood had been dealing with a crisis of faith and changing sexual identity, which reportedly led to her having feelings of hopelessness. The girl only expressed her feelings to her friends through a series of messages uncovered after death. Then, under the guise of wanting to create social media content, she convinced her dad to take her to a local body of water. There, she deliberately took her own life.
An inquest into the death of the 13-year-old uncovered that the teen may have been dealing with depression before she took her own life, the BBC reported. Assistant coroner Caroline Chandler told the Bradford Coroners’ Court that messages the girl sent, along with witness testimony, “tragically indicated an intention to end her own life.”
Detective Inspector Laura Hall with the West Yorkshire Police told the inquest that officers saw screenshots of Snapchat messages the teen sent to her friends before her death. She allegedly told them she was “in a low mood and confused about her sexuality,” the BBC reported. Hall also said the girl told her friends she was going somewhere with her father. Her messages indicated that she was “intending to take her own life.”
Mahmood regularly went on walks to the reservoir with her family; it had been a place she enjoyed going.
On the day of her death, she woke up her father, asking him to take her to the water so she could take pictures and videos.
“Qudsiyah had asked to visit to take photos on the bridge like she had seen on social media, although due to her father’s ill-health, he warned her that they couldn’t stay very long,” Hall testified, as reported by Wales Online. “Upon promising she would ‘do well in her exams’ if her father took her, Mr Mahmood and Qudsiyah drove to the reservoir around lunchtime.”
Hall explained that the father was walking slightly ahead of his daughter when he recalled “feeling like something was wrong” and “hearing a splash.” When he turned around, he saw his daughter “struggling” in the water.
At the time, there was only one witness. He told investigators he saw the girl enter the water “without hesitation.”
After the horrific incident, police visited the girl’s family on May 28, 2025. They were unable to find her body until the following day, when they used sonar technology to navigate the deep water, per Wales Online. Initially, her death was considered an accident. But during the inquest, investigators changed their stance.
“Sadly, it would seem by the evidence that Qudsiyah entered the water of her own accord, stepping off the bridge. Given the exchange of messages, and that on a balance of probability, both stages of deliberation and intention have been met, my ruling is suicide,” Chandler told the court.
According to her family, they didn’t know that the girl was struggling emotionally. They told investigators they were “quite supportive and if Qudsiyah was struggling she could come to them.”
Dean Jones, headteacher at Crossley Heath School in Halifax where Mahmood was a year 8 student, described her as being a “bright, kind and friendly young person who brought happiness to our school,” ITV reported.
Note: If you or any of your loved ones are struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can always reach out to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling 988. They are available 24/7 by phone or online chat.
