MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JUNE 16: A Minneapolis Police officer rolls up caution tape at a crime scene on June 16, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
OAN NEWSROOM
UPDATED 5:20 PM PT – Sunday, July 3, 2022
A toddler died after falling off the balcony of a high rise in Harlem, New York City. On Saturday, police found a three-year-old boy sprawled across the fifth floor scaffolding of the Taino Towers residential complex after he fell off the 29th floor. Neighbors said they heard adult’s from the boy’s unit arguing on the terrace shortly before they heard a “big thump.”
Nidia Cordero, a close neighbor of the family who would often lend money to the boy’s mother for milk and diapers said the family has a history of domestic violence.
“There was a fight every single day, said Cordero. “There was not one day that there was not a fight.”
Witnesses recalled hearing the child’s mother scream from the street below as the father ran down the stairs in tears. He reportedly attempted to climb onto the scaffolding to get his child, but was ultimately unsuccessful.
“You got to watch your children,” voiced a neighbor. “You take your eyes off a kid one time and your done. Anything can happen.”
A toddler fell from a balcony on the 29th floor & landed on the 3rd floor scaffolding of the Taino Towers in East Harlem this morning.
The little boy was taken to Harlem Hospital & was pronounced dead. NYPD questioning parents to find out what went wrong. @NBCNewYork pic.twitter.com/lb63d5dJCs— Melissa Colorado (@melissacolorado) July 2, 2022
The toddler was immediately rushed to Harlem Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Meanwhile, how the boy fell exactly remains under investigation. Officials do not know whether the boy fell from a window or balcony, but under New York City law owners of apartment buildings are required to install window guards if a tenant is under the age of 10.
In the meantime, authorities said a preliminary investigation showed the child’s death was accidental.