Dr. Helen Garay Sanchez, a 32‑year‑old anesthesiologist from Nicaragua, was discovered dead at a Dollar Tree in Miami’s Little Havana on Sunday. The 32‑year‑old, who had been staying with relatives since December 4, was found naked inside the store’s walk‑in freezer at 968 SW 8th St. The body was reported by a shop employee the next morning, and police were on the scene by 8 a.m.
“I don’t know how this happened,” cousin Daniela Cortez told reporters. “The thing is that even the family has a lot of questions. We don’t know how this happened either, and we’re not getting any answers.”
Cortez said the last known footage of Sanchez shows her walking into the freezer on the evening of December 13, just before the store closed at 10 p.m. Miami police said they found no evidence of foul play and are treating the death as an “unclassified” or undetermined case pending a medical‑examiner report.
While investigators search for a clear explanation, Sanchez’s family has turned to a GoFundMe campaign to cover repatriation, transportation, and burial costs back in Nicaragua. As of Friday the fundraiser had raised $18,382.
“We are aware of this tragic incident, and our thoughts are with the individual’s family and loved ones,” a spokesperson for Dollar Tree told local news outlet WSVN. “We are cooperating fully with authorities at this time.”
A shopper who witnessed the discovery told a local news station, “I would never believe, in a Dollar Tree, you would find a dead body. I’m totally in shock.”
The case remains puzzling. Some speculate that Sanchez may have inadvertently walked into the cooler and become trapped, while others wonder if she was the victim of foul play. The family, like the public, is left to contemplate the circumstances until a definitive cause can be established.
In the medical community, deaths from extreme cold can sometimes trigger a bizarre physiological response known as paradoxical undressing, in which victims remove clothing even as they freeze. The phenomenon is still under study as investigators work to untangle the events that led to Dr. Sanchez’s untimely death.
“She was a great woman,” Cortez said, “not only as a professional but also as a person.”
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