Police Identify Friday’s Verrazano Bridge Jumper – Incident latest in series of suicide attempts on or near span

By on June 11, 2012  News
Jun 112012
 

Image source: joo0ey via Flickr

Police have classified last Friday’s suicide leap from the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge as a missing persons case. NYPD officials made the determination after search and rescue teams came up empty in the search for a body, writes Staten Island Advance.

Friday’s incident marks the fourth in a series of both successful and attempted suicides to take place on or near the bridge by different men since April.

From SILive.com:

Brooklyn resident Benny Guzman, 46, is believed to have abandoned his car on on the lower level of the Staten Island-bound side of the span, at about 11:40 a.m. yesterday, according to police.

The man identified by law enforcement as Guzman apparently jumped before first responders were able to reach him.

NYPD, FDNY, and Coast Guard units called off an “extensive search” for Guzman’s remains at approximately 8 p.m. on Friday.

The apparent suicide would be the third attempt – and second successful one – by three different individuals to jump off the span in less than 2 months.

On May 29, a 54-year-old Staten Island man leaped from the Verrazano to his death.

Police and bridge workers were able to prevent an attempted suicide jump by another man in April.

On May 15, after responding to a call to a rest area near the Brooklyn side of the bridge, police found the body of a man sitting in a dark minivan. The victim was believed to have taken his own life with a .25-caliber semi-automatic hand gun – which was recovered from the floor of the vehicle.

  • Kwoodallrn

    one should ask them selves if these have any thing to do with the state of the economy, unemployment and personal financial crisis, suicide is on the rise just as it was during the depression. Thanks Obama.

    • Latinogodfather

      hmmm… I could’ve sworn the economy was on a downslope before Obama even came into office.

    • NYBBB

      Not in defense of Obama, but more in light to take a look at our situation from a greater angle. Have you asked yourself the fact that it was during a Republican presidency that US declared war. Billions of dollars were budgeted then for this task and yes we already had a flaky economy and Obama was no were near the picture. In addition, President Bush had two terms completed and the elected Republicans to run against the Democrats were a joke (McCainPalin). If you asked me that was the perfect time for Republicans to let go of the presidency seat and let whoever came onboard take the blame for it. We are a nation of millions, how it is that close minded Americans still point the finger to one single guy.