Family Denies Veterinary Student Committed Suicide, Father States: He Was Very Happy

The family has refuted claims that I Putu Gde Pradnya Nolan Toli (22), a veterinary medicine student at Udayana University, died by suicide. Toli’s body was discovered beneath Jembatan Shortcut 7 in Gitgit Village, Sukasada District, Buleleng Regency, on Thursday 27 February 2026.

His father, Made Merdana, insisted that his son had no issues that would have motivated him to take his own life. Merdana described the cheerfulness and contentment his son displayed during their final telephone conversation.

“My son called me before he left to come home. He was in such good spirits. His thesis was already bound, and his graduation application had been approved. He said he wanted to come home that day,” Made Merdana said when visited at his residence on Friday 27 February 2026.

According to him, the final conversation with his son was warm and enthusiastic. Nolan even discussed his plans for the six months following graduation.

“He asked, ‘Father, what should I do then, I still have six months of free time. Should I intern or work?’ I told him to come home first and not to worry about work. He said he wanted to build a chicken breeding facility—he was already preparing for poultry breeding. I told Nolan that if he builds this breeding operation over the next six months as his own enterprise, he wouldn’t need to worry about work later. He replied okay, father,” he explained.

Over the phone, Nolan mentioned that the weather in Denpasar was clear. Merdana then advised his son not to push himself if it rained during the journey.

“I told him if it rained, not to drive through it, just rest at an Indomaret or Alfamart. He said okay. He also said he would stop at campus first before leaving, around midday,” Merdana said.

However, by evening, Nolan had not arrived home. Merdana grew worried because his son was accustomed to making the Denpasar-Buleleng journey regularly.

“It rained here in the evening. I had just picked up his younger sibling from lessons, and he still hadn’t arrived. I called him first and it went through but he didn’t answer. I sent a WhatsApp message and it was still delivered. Not long after, it showed only one tick. I started to feel something was wrong,” he said.

On the advice of a colleague who was a police officer, Made reported the situation through the 110 service and visited the police station. Shortly afterwards, he received information from Sukasada Police that a motorcycle had been found parked for an extended period at Jembatan Shortcut 7.

“A colleague at the police station asked, ‘Is this really your son’s motorcycle?’ I checked—it was definitely his,” Merdana said quietly.

Made Merdana firmly stated that his son had no family or financial problems. He also refuted reports suggesting Nolan was trapped in online loan debt.

“That is not true. My son never lacked anything for his studies; everything was provided for. His motorcycle was also newly purchased according to his preference,” he insisted.

According to Merdana, Nolan was known to be active and enjoyed photography. During his studies, he served as a campus journalist and photographer for the campus magazine.

“He loved photography. His camera was found below in a damaged condition. He was an inquisitive person; whenever he saw something unusual, he would approach it. He might have stopped to take a photo, slipped, or something else. His backpack was also large, 30 litres, placed at the front,” he said.

Now, Merdana accepts this incident as a tragedy. Nolan himself had completed his studies in seven semesters with a cumlaude distinction and had already received confirmation for his graduation ceremony in April.

“He actually could have taken part in the graduation ceremony now, but chose to postpone because many of his friends hadn’t yet graduated. My son had no problems. He was very happy. He even sent a photo to his mother,” he said.

The family hopes the public will cease speculation and stop spreading unverified information.

“We object to the conflicting information on social media. Please understand this is a tragedy for our family. Our belief is that there was nothing that would have led him to choose to end his life. My son was not like that,” Merdana concluded.