‘Suicide by laptop’ riddle of two brilliant students found dead in hotel room

Two brilliant university students were found dead together in a hotel room after apparently rigging up a laptop to deliver lethal injections in what is thought to have been a suicide pact.



Friends Robert Miller, 20, and 19-year-old James Robertson – both described as highly intelligent – were found slumped in chairs.

Their bodies were discovered facing each other at the £65-a-night Ramada Jarvis Hotel in Ayr – 80 miles from where they were both studying for joint maths and physics degrees at Edinburgh University.

Grim discovery: The Ramada Hotel where the pair were found slumped in chairs

Staff entered the room after becoming concerned that the young men hadn’t checked out.



The tragedy has raised fears the pair were influenced by Australian doctor Philip Nitschke, dubbed Dr Death, inventor of the so-called ‘Deliverance Machine’.



Pro-euthanasia campaigner Dr Nitschke’s device involved a computer connected to a syringe driver which could deliver a lethal dose of medication at the touch of a button. It killed four terminally ill Australians before being outlawed in 1997.

The students’ deaths have sent shockwaves through the remote Orkney communities where they were raised.



A friend, who asked not to be named, said: ‘No one can understand why this has happened. They were just boys next door – good fun and good friends to have.’

Bright future: Orkney lad James Robertson was a gifted musician as well as a top class maths and physics student

Mr Robertson had attended Stromness Academy, while Mr Miller, who was just days away from his 21st birthday, went to Kirkwall Grammar on the other side of the Orkney mainland.



However, Mr Miller’s page on social networking site Facebook shows that they shared mutual friends.



They had arrived at the seafront hotel on Tuesday and were said to have been ‘happy and chatty’ when they spoke to staff.



When they did not appear back at reception the next day, staff made the grim discovery. Strathclyde Police examined the laptop and said they are not treating the deaths as suspicious.

Tragic ending: Highly-intelligent Robert Miller was found dead with fellow student

Mr Robertson was a gifted musician known as Jim.



Last night, the mother of one of his friends said no one had any idea what had caused the pair to take their lives.



She said: ‘Jim was just the nicest, sweetest boy and everyone is in total shock. He played in a band and was a very good guitarist. He was a gentle soul and always looked out for his friends. But he had a dry sense of humour too and liked a joke.

‘He decided to go off to study in Edinburgh as many of the young folk here do. He was highly intelligent, with an exceptional grasp of numbers, so it seemed the right step. This has just come like a bolt out of the blue.’



Mr Robertson used to be in an indie-rock band in Orkney called Feedback. He played a number of instruments but specialised in the guitar.



His devastated parents Barbara and William, of Stromness, travelled to the mainland after their son’s body was discovered. Mr Miller’s parents, James, and Christine, from Finstown, also made the journey to Ayrshire.



Both families are well known in the community. Mrs Robertson works with charities and voluntary groups. Mr and Mrs Miller are directors of the Orkney Media Group, which owns the newspapers The Orcadian and Orkney Today. They had the heart-breaking task of identifying the two men’s bodies and it is understood they are now making arrangements to have their sons’ remains transported back to Orkney.



Last night, Stromness councillor Ian Johnston said: ‘Nobody has any idea what is behind this and we are absolutely shattered. I knew Jim. He was in the same year at school as my own son, so it has hit my family hard as well.



‘They will be very badly missed by the community.’

Edinburgh University has been helping police piece together any motive the pair might have had for taking their own lives.



There has been growing concern about the availability of suicide ‘self-help’ guides. Critics have said they are a rich hunting ground for predatory intruders seeking to exploit the vulnerable.

Nicola Peckett, of the Samaritans, said: ‘Suicide is a complex issue and is not usually the result of just one factor or event. It is very important not to let your feelings spiral out of control and to seek help when you don’t feel able to cope.’



The Samaritans can be contacted on 08457 90 90 90 or by emailing jo@samaritans.org

