Police have not identified the woman or determined how she died after the discovery Wednesday afternoon near Plumb Beach.
NEW YORK — Police are investigating the death of an unidentified woman found inside a trash can in a parking area near Plumb Beach in Brooklyn, authorities and law enforcement sources said.
Officers responded shortly after 3 p.m. Wednesday to the area near the Belt Parkway and Knapp Street in Sheepshead Bay after a 911 caller reported an unresponsive woman. Police found her unconscious and unresponsive, and emergency medical workers pronounced her dead at the scene. Authorities had not released her age or identity as of Thursday morning.
The circumstances surrounding the woman’s death remained unclear. Police have not announced an apparent cause of death or said whether investigators found signs of trauma. The New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner is expected to determine the cause and manner of death. Authorities also have not classified the case as a homicide.
Investigators remained at the Plumb Beach parking lot for hours Wednesday, examining the area and collecting evidence while part of the site was closed off. The woman’s body was later removed by the medical examiner’s office. Police have not publicly described the evidence collected or said whether investigators believe the woman died at the location where she was found.
No arrests had been reported by Thursday morning. Police also had not identified a suspect or announced that they were searching for a particular person in connection with the death. Investigators were working to determine what happened before the woman was discovered and whether a crime had been committed.
The discovery drew attention to a normally quiet stretch of shoreline in southern Brooklyn. Plumb Beach sits along the Belt Parkway near Sheepshead Bay and Gerritsen Creek and includes a parking area used by people visiting the waterfront. The National Park Service describes the site as a mix of shoreline, tidal mudflats, salt marsh, dunes and wooded areas.
Residents interviewed near the scene described the area as generally calm and lightly traveled. Sheepshead Bay resident Roberto Avitia, who said he sometimes runs there at night, described the location as peaceful. Another resident, Nathaniel Lozada, said the beach is not heavily visited compared with some other New York waterfront areas.
Those observations do not establish what happened to the woman or how long she had been at the site. Police have released few details beyond the initial response, and investigators have not said who made the 911 call or what led that person to the trash can. Authorities also have not disclosed whether surveillance footage, vehicles or other potential evidence are part of the investigation.
The woman’s identity remained withheld Thursday as police continued their investigation. The medical examiner’s findings are expected to provide more information about how she died, while detectives work to establish the circumstances surrounding her death.
Author note: Last updated September 17, 2026.