Saniyah Cheatham Obituary, Death; – An 18-year-old teenager from the Bronx, who passed away in police custody early Saturday morning at the 41st Precinct located on Longwood Avenue in Hunts Point, has been identified as Saniyah Cheatham, as reported by the NYPD.
Officials indicated that Cheatham was discovered unresponsive in her cell at approximately 12:40 a.m. on July 5, which led the police to request EMS to respond to the stationhouse.
The NYPD stated, “Multiple officers performed CPR while awaiting EMS response.” Emergency medical services transported the teenager to Lincoln Hospital; however, she was declared dead by the medical personnel. Officials mentioned that the NYPD’s Force Investigation Division is overseeing the inquiry into Cheatham’s death.
Authorities have not yet disclosed the medical examiner’s findings or publicly stated the reason for Cheatham’s arrest, although CBS News New York reported that the teenager was taken into custody due to a fight. Videos and photos also revealed that hours before she was arrested, Cheatham was celebrating Independence Day at a cookout with family and friends in Crotona Park.
Cheatham’s mother, Thomasina Cheatham, mourned her daughter’s death on Facebook Wednesday. She asked friends and family to take a moment of silence for the young woman. “For my precious princess Saniyah, she’s no longer with us, S.I.H.P. [sleep in heavenly peace] angel,” Thomasina Cheatham said in the social media post. “I miss you so much. We shall meet again.”
The New York Times reported Tuesday that law enforcement officials with knowledge of Cheatham’s death said that the young woman killed herself in her cell shortly after her arrest, using her sweater to hang herself. NYPD officials did not respond to the Bronx Times questions about Cheatham’s manner of death. Cheatham’s mother has not yet responded to the Bronx Time’s requests for comment,
