Police: Man Killed in Bronx Elevator Shaft May Have Been "Surfing"
A man fatally crushed by an elevator inside a Bronx public housing complex may have been riding the elevator like a "roller coaster," NYPD sources told the New York Post.
Tito "Beboo" Morales was killed around 4 a.m. Monday morning when he became wedged between the elevator and a wall between the 18th and 19th floors at the South Bronx's Adams Houses, authorities said.
Morales, known as a talented tattoo artist, was in the building to visit his girlfriend, Joanna Sanchez. Although police are investigating the possibility that Morales had been "elevator surfing" and slipped as the elevator descended, Sanchez said he only climbed on top of it because he got stuck.
"My sister saw everything," she told the Post. "She said it was horrible. She saw his body dangling. When the elevator went up, he flew up and then he fell."
Neighbors said the elevators often get stuck. One 20th floor resident told the New York Daily News she'd been trapped three times in the past year.
"They're crazy. They're not safe," she said.
According to the Post, the Adams Houses elevators were last inspected in January 2013.
Police don't suspect foul play in Morales' death.
