Self-Mutilation: A Way to Protect Yourself From a Committed Crime or to Gain Personal Benefits

Abstract

Self-mutilation refers to the state in which a person deliberately hurts himself without the intention to commit suicide but with the motive of some personal gain. Four cases are described in the current study with four different personal motives -drug supply, accusation of intimate partner violence, confrontation of parental prohibition, and a way to hide and escape from a committed crime. Evaluating the injuries due to self-mutilation might be challenging due to atypical lesions and well-structured false stories when the victim has some level of competency. Careful analysis of the victim's story and a thorough evaluation of the sustained injuries are needed. If doubts about artificial injuries exist, immediate consultation with a forensic pathologist is required.