Police in upstate New York are investigating the death of a college student who had been outside in subzero conditions for several hours.
Tyler Lopresti-Castro, 20, a student at SUNY Oneonta, was found unconscious outside a municipal bus garage by two Oneonta transit workers just before 7 a.m. on Thursday, according to authorities.
Police and fire services were notified by the drivers. Terry Knapp, the Otsego County Coroner, told ABC News that when first responders came, they “did every possible thing they could do to resuscitate him.”
He was pronounced dead at the hospital where he had been taken after being recognized by his SUNY Oneonta ID.
Oneonta Police Chief Christopher Witzenburg said Friday that the teenager, who was dressed merely in a sweater and pants, had an “extended exposure to extremely cold, subzero temperatures”.
At the time, Witzenburg described the incident as a “cold weather-related incident.”
According to Knapp, the temperature was 12 degrees below zero that morning.
The inquiry into the reason and manner of death is ongoing. Officials anticipate the autopsy to be finished on Friday. “No indication of criminality” has been stated by authorities at this time.
SUNY Oneonta has said that it is fully collaborating with local authorities in the inquiry.
“This is a very sad time for SUNY Oneonta,” the university stated to ABC News. “Our campus community is mourning the loss of one of our own, and we are focused on providing support to the student’s family and friends. Our hearts go out to them, and we are providing whatever assistance we can to help them during this difficult time.”
Witzenburg said that Lopresti-Castro was discovered 3.5 miles from the campus.
He has been missing for two hours, and authorities are scrambling to fill in the blanks.
Lopresti-Castro was last seen about midnight Thursday, according to police, who did not specify where he was last seen. Detectives studied garage security footage and saw him emerge from a forested area behind the garage at 2:15 a.m., according to police, who think he traveled through heavy snow and across a drainage stream before emerging onto city land.
“Between midnight and 2:15 a.m. we really don’t know where he was, so we’re asking that the public contact the Oneonta Police Department with any information that they may be able to provide to detectives and try to fill that time gap,” Witzenburg said.
When queried by a reporter about the possibility of fraternity participation at the institution, which is presently in the midst of rush week, Witzenburg described it as “speculation.”
“I don’t at this point have any information to believe that there was fraternity involvement, but it’s something we’re open to if we have more information,” Witzenburg said. ‘We can’t speculate at this time.”
According to Lisa Miller, a SUNY Oneonta spokesperson, the school hasn’t received any evidence that the death was tied to a fraternity, but will await the outcome of the investigation.
She said that no students are presently being investigated by the school.
