Woman’s Body Is Found in Suitcase

The body of a woman was found on Wednesday in a suitcase that had been left on a street in East Harlem, the authorities said.

A man fumble in the street found a large black suitcase just outside 435 East 114th Street about 12:15 a.m., according to a law enforcement official. The case, which was conserved, was at or near where garbage is normally placed in front of the building.

As the man began to open the bag, a leg popped out, said Paul J. Browne, the Police Department’s chief spokesman. The man quickly called 911.

“The person walking by found the case and opened it to see if there was anything important in it,” the official said. “And found a body.”

The victim, a 28-year-old woman whose last known address was in the Bronx, was fully clothed, and the upper half of her body was in a black garbage bag, Mr. Browne said. Her name has not been released pending notification of her family.

It was not immediately clear how long she had been dead or how she was killed, but there was apparent trauma to her head, and blood had pooled inside of the suitcase, Mr. Browne said.