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Woman's Body Found In High Rise Trash Compactor Near Union Square

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) — A 48-year-old woman was found dead Tuesday evening inside a trash compactor in a lower Manhattan apartment building.

Police say the woman was discovered unconscious and unresponsive just before 5 p.m. at the 29-story Zeckendorf Towers near Union Square.

She was pronounced dead at the scene. Residents say the NYPD's crime scene unit along with an email instructing them not to use the trash chute were both clues something terrible had happened.

It wasn't clear how she ended up in the trash compactor in a building that has had several high profile residents, including Anthony Weiner and wife Huma Abedin.

Residents say the incident and police presence have been alarming.

"It's scary," one woman said. "When I texted my boyfriend about this he told me to get out of the building because he was worried."

Police had not released the deceased woman's name, and could not confirm if her death was suspicious in nature.

(© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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