Saniyya Dennis, the New York college student who disappeared last month, died by apparent suicide, officials said Thursday.
"It appears that this poor girl took her own life," Erie County District Attorney John Flynn told reporters during a morning news conference. While authorities have not located the 19-year-old's body, they were able to reach that conclusion based on a timeline of her last hours.
Flynn said on the afternoon of April 24, Dennis got into an argument with her boyfriend in New York City over the phone. After trying to contact him 59 times to no avail, she called another male friend in New York City and talked about killing herself, the DA said.
Multiple law enforcement agencies and numerous volunteers were involved in a search for Dennis following her disappearance. Dogs were trained to pick up her scent. They stopped picking up the scent near Goat Island, Flynn said. Despite the evidence, the DA said the search for Dennis will continue.
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If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide please call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text TALK to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.
