Video allegedly shows moments before Miami woman entered Dollar Tree freezer

People reports that video obtained by police allegedly shows some of the final moments before 32-year-old Helen Massiell Garay Sanchez entered a freezer inside a Dollar Tree on SW 8th Street in Miami, where she was later found dead.

The Miami Police Department said an employee found Sanchez dead inside the freezer around 8 a.m. on Dec. 14. A police spokesperson said investigators obtained video from a family member and from the store the morning the probe began and added, "This is why we know there was no foul play," saying, "She went into the freezer on her own." Police previously said Sanchez allegedly entered a restricted employee-only area and remained in the freezer overnight, and a police officer who spoke with WPLG said mental illness was not a factor. Local outlets reported the family-member video allegedly showed Sanchez before she entered the store.

Her cause and manner of death remain pending. Family members have said they have "a lot of questions" and were "not getting any answers," her cousin Daniela Cortez told the New York Post. A Dollar Tree spokesperson said the company is "cooperating fully with the authorities at this time" and that it is "aware of this tragic incident," while Stefany Pereira, who organized a GoFundMe, described Sanchez as a Nicaraguan doctor and anesthesiologist who "dedicated her life to medicine" and "brought hope and healing to countless children and families."

Key Topics

World, Helen Massiell, Dollar Tree, Miami, Miami Police Department, Anesthesiologist