Michelle Kim

Girl, 11, Dies in Plunge From East Harlem High-Rise; Suicide Suspected: NYPD

What to Know

  • An 11-year-old girl has died in a plunge off a high-rise in East Harlem Thursday, the NYPD says
  • Sources say the leading theory is suicide, and that she may been upset about something that happened at school
  • There didn't appear to be domestic issues, and bullying didn't seem to be a factor, either, police say

An 11-year-old girl has died after plunging from either a window or the roof of a building in East Harlem, police say. 

The girl fell at 2365 First Avenue Thursday evening, according to police. She was taken in critical condition to Harlem Hospital, where she was declared dead. 

It's not clear how she fell. Chopper 4 over the scene showed emergency responders wheeling someone on a stretcher from a courtyard of a building. Police officers were also seen canvassing the roof, where authorities say she was seen on surveillance video going by herself.

Sources said the leading theory of her death is suicide, and that she may have been upset about something that happened at school. She may have gotten in trouble or been disciplined, the sources said. 

There didn't appear to be any domestic issues, and no bullying is suspected either. 

The girl's family was too distraught to talk Thursday. 

Neighbor Midalys Sanchez said she'd said hello and "God bless you" to the girl just moments before she witnessed the horrifying scene. 

"I was selling water right there, right over there, when I heard this noise," Sanchez said in Spanish. "I turned and I saw she had fallen over there. I said, 'Oh, my God,' I screamed. I was the first to see her when she fell." 

Sanchez said she watched the little girl grow up. 

"I thought about my own children, I have four of them. It hurt me," she said. "I had just said hi to her. She always said, 'Hi, mami.'"

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 provides people in distress, or those around them, with 24-hour support. The Crisis Text Line allows people to text 741-741 to connect with crisis counselors.

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