Man, 26, is found dead in his bathtub with multiple stab wounds after massive explosion blew roof off his Queens apartment building in what cops say is 'an elaborate suicide'
A 26-year-old man battling depression and chronic headaches was found dead with multiple stab wounds in his bathtub after a massive explosion blew the roof off his Queens apartment building on Tuesday, in what police are now investigating as an elaborate suicide.
The blast rocked a seven-story building on 41st Avenue and 74th Street in Elmhurst at around 10.25am on Tuesday, sending a column of flames and smoke pouring from a gaping hole in the side of the structure and displacing more than 40 residents.
When first responders entered the penthouse apartment, they discovered Anesti Bulgaretsi, 26, dead in the bathtub.
Police believe a man's elaborate suicide is to blame for a massive explosion that damaged this apartment building on 41st Avenue in Queens on Tuesday
This photo shows extensive damage to the building in Queens where police found the body of 26-year-old Anesti Bulgaretsi
The blast and resulting fire severely damaged the seven-story building. More than 40 residents have been left homeless
When first responders entered the seventh-floor penthouse, they found 26-year-old Anesti Bulgaretsi dead in the bathtub with multiple stab wounds to his body
The man had been stabbed multiple times, but it was unclear how he died. A knife was said to have been recovered from the bathroom. The medical examiner will determine Bulgaretsi's cause and manner of death.
Investigators said they believe the explosion was intentionally set off using an unspecified device, suggesting that it may have been part of Bulgaretsi's suicide plot.
The New York Daily News reported, citing unnamed sources, that Bulgaretsi was depressed and suffering from head pain, and had been out of work for two months. In the leadup to his violent death, the 26-year-old allegedly had been telling people he wanted to return to his native Greece.
The explosion was said to be so powerful that some people thought a plane had crashed into the building, reported ABC 7 NY.
Four firefighters sustained minor injuries while battling the blaze in Queens
The explosion was so powerful that some residents thought a plane had crashed into the building
'I heard boom, and then the building, like, shook, so all I could think was, "What the hell just happened,”' Brenda Meira told CBS2.
FDNY Chief Thomas Currao told NBC New York that the impact caused a collapse and severely destabilized the building. Four firefighters were hospitalized with minor injuries.
The explosion and resulting fire have left more than 40 residents homeless. The American Red Cross was assisting the displaced neighbors.
For confidential support call the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255
The American Red Cross was assisting more than 40 displaced residents in the wake of the blast and fire