Heaven’s Gate cult mass suicide
On March 26, 1997, 39 followers of Heaven’s Gate died in a mass suicide in California.
These people believed, that through their suicides, their souls could go on a journey aboard a spaceship they believed to be following comet Hale-Bopp. Some male members of the cult underwent voluntary castration in preparation for the genderless life they believed awaited them after the suicide. On 30 March 1997, Thomas Nichols, younger brother of actress Nichelle Nichols (Uhura in the Star Trek television series), was discovered dead in his California trailer, with a note nearby that read, “I’m going to the spaceship with Hale-Bopp to be with those who have gone before me.” Using propane gas to end his life, Nichols, like the members of Heaven’s Gate, had his head covered by a plastic bag and his upper torso covered with a purple shroud.
In May 1997, two Heaven’s Gate members who had not been present for the attempted mass suicide, one completing in the attempt, the other going into coma for two days and then recovering. Wayne Cooke and Charlie Humphreys, later committed suicide in a similar manner to the group. Humphreys had survived a suicide pact with Cooke in May 1997, but ultimately committed suicide in February 1998.
On March 19 1997, Marshall Applewhite taped himself speaking of mass suicide. The Heaven’s Gate group was against suicide but they believed they had no choice but to leave Earth as quickly as possible. After claiming that a space craft was trailing the comet Hale-Bopp, Applewhite convinced 38 followers to commit suicide so that their souls could board the space craft. Applewhite believed that after their deaths, a UFO would take their souls to another “level of existence above human”. This and other UFO-related beliefs held by the group have led some observers to characterize the group as a type of UFO religion. In October 1996, the group purchased alien abduction insurance to cover up to 50 members at a cost of $10,000.
The cult rented a 9,200-sq.-ft. mansion, located in a gated community of upscale homes in the San Diego area community of Rancho Santa Fe, California from Sam Koutchesfahani, paying $7,000 per month in cash. The thirty-eight Heaven’s Gate members, plus group leader Applewhite, were found dead in the home on 26 March 1997. In the heat of the California spring, many of the bodies had begun to decompose by the time they were discovered. The corpses underwent autopsies, where cyanide and arsenic were found. The bodies were later cremated.
The suicide was accomplished by ingestion of phenobarbital with vodka. Additionally, plastic bags were secured around their heads after ingesting the mix to induce asphyxiation. Authorities found the dead lying neatly in their own bunk beds, faces and torsos covered by a square, purple cloth. Each member carried a five dollar bill and three quarters in their pockets. All 39 were dressed in identical black shirts and sweat pants, black-and-white Nike Decades trainers, and armband patches reading “Heaven’s Gate Away Team”. Leader Applewhite was the third to last member to die; two women remained after him and were the only ones found without bags over their heads.
One of the group’s members did not kill himself: weeks before the suicides Rio Di Angelo agreed with Applewhite to leave the group so he could ensure future dissemination of Heaven’s Gate videos and literature. He videotaped the mansion in Rancho Santa Fe; however, the tape was not shown to police until 2002, five years after the event.
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