Woman's body found in basement of luxury apartment building in Manhattan

[Cryptic]

There is also the buddy system, that no young female should walk alone, jog alone, etc., esp in a city at night. I’m curious if she hadn’t been drunk, how would she have gotten home? Same method? Called her own taxi? Alone?

I agree that the buddy system is preferred. I just dont know how practical it is in NYC- pricey areas of Manhattan in particular. In the end, alot New Yorkers live far from where they work, especially if working in pricey areas of Manhattan.

As to how she would get home if sober.... I think it would depend on where they worked. Working in Manhattan would increase that chances that the group of work friends lived all over- but went out for fun in Manhattan.

But, if they worked in say, the "outer boroughs" and then went to Manhattan, there could be an increased chance that they lived where they worked- at least relatively.

As for young NYC women travelling alone, I dont know how often this is done. As a tourist, I did have a "shocking" experience once on a subway station in a very nice area adjoining Central Park:

10:00 at night. Essentially nobody in the station. I rounded a corner and was confronted by a......lone young woman dressed in clothes that softly, but firmly said "high quality fashion". I am 6'3", large and often unshaven and wearing a T-shirt. She was not startled, she did not give me a second look. No nervousness at all as she "clicked" away in heels.

She looked local. I dont know if she was fluke, or if women travelling alone at night in some areas of NYC using select stations are fairly common?

 

[Inthedetails]

I agree that the buddy system is preferred. I just dont know how practical it is in NYC- pricey areas of Manhattan in particular. In the end, alot New Yorkers live far from where they work, especially if working in pricey areas of Manhattan.

As to how she would get home if sober.... I think it would depend on where they worked. Working in Manhattan would increase that chances that the group of work friends lived all over- but went out for fun in Manhattan.

But, if they worked in say, the "outer boroughs" and then went to Manhattan, there could be an increased chance that they lived where they worked- at least relatively.

As for young NYC women travelling alone, I dont know how often this is done. As a tourist, I did have a "shocking" experience once on a subway station in a very nice area adjoining Central Park:

10:00 at night. Essentially nobody in the station. I rounded a corner and was confronted by a......lone young woman dressed in clothes that softly, but firmly said "high quality fashion". I am 6'3", large and often unshaven and wearing a T-shirt. She was not startled, she did not give me a second look. No nervousness at all as she "clicked" away in heels.

She looked local. I dont know if she was fluke, or if women travelling alone at night in some areas of NYC using select stations are fairly common?

I live in Manhattan and ride the subway alone. I'm not young and fashionable, but I used to be! (Honestly, when I saw a big guy like you, I'd likely stay within your eyeshot because other guys are less likely to be a jerk when there is a stronger male around, in my experience.) The subway is how people get around. I've had some bad experiences with cabbies, so that isn't a necessarily safe alternative.

The risk in this case is how drunk Jaclyn was more than the time of day or mode of transportation, imo. If she died accidentally in a trash chute, she was in danger of falling onto subway tracks as well. Predators exist, as we all know, but in her state, her risks increased even beyond that....as we have seen.

I'm not blaming anyone for the excessive drinking...just wish it didn't happen.

jmo

 

[sunflowermomma]

Statistically, NYC is safer than most small towns in America based on violent crime rates. New York City Is a Lot Safer Than Small-Town America

The area she was in, near Chelsea, is one of the safest neighborhoods in NYC: Explore 8 of the Safest Neighborhoods in NYC - PODS Blog

Personally, as a 5'2" 110 lb woman, I feel safe alone at night in that part of Manhattan, but I don't make a habit of being alone on the street late at night/after drinking. In my circles, it's common for women to travel alone at night, but usually just on routes we use a lot and know well. I would not be catching a train I haven't taken before or walking around a part of town I haven't been to late at night.

Jaclyn is also from Minnesota and may not be as familiar with the "rules" of the city, although I would personally be more afraid walking around just about any other city at night where I could be thrown in a car. There are just so many people around all the time here.

 

[duckcat]

According to the missing poster, Jackie caught a cab in front of Catch Steakhouse which is on 9th Avenue, a one-way road that runs south. And if she was going to Brooklyn, then no matter what bridge/tunnel crossing she was using, the quickest way would usually be via the West Side Highway. So, I don't think the cab ever drove north. I think it went south on 9th Avenue, and then made a right turn to get to the WSH, perhaps at W 14th or W 15th Street.

I believe that at some point, probably before the cab reached the WSH, Jackie got out (or was thrown out) of the cab. It would be no more than a 15-20 minute walk from the corner of 10th & 14th to the residential building where her body was found.

The map below illustrates what I mean (solid blue line for the cab ride, dotted line for on foot).

View attachment 465966

Edit - Also, there have been some comments about Jackie "calling" a taxi. I doubt she did that. It's likely she just hailed one on the street. On a Friday night in Chelsea there would be plenty of yellow cabs crawling the streets.

I’m not sure if I’m allowed to post, but her family gave information about the likely cab route and where her phone last reported a location. She left from a bar slightly north of the steakhouse, and the cabbie looped north one block, probably to get onto the freeway. It is slightly strange to have gone this direction as he could have easily just gone south, but as others have said there are lots of one ways and many reasons why you might get rerouted. Google maps surprisingly also doesn’t always give the most efficient route, for various reasons. The longtime NYC cabbies have their own routes and know them like the back of their hand. Perhaps also though she was unintelligible and wasn’t able to give him a proper address, so he drove around and then eventually just kicked her out.

It looks like the location of her last phone ping is a block away (.3mi) from the building where she was found. She may have dropped it there when she got out, or it could just be the location was slightly off. I know that sometimes occurs in the city.

https://x.com/katlynkampmeier/status/1730754990145237319?s=46

 

[duckcat]

I was finally able to find a ground floor floor plan. In the video we see her try to open doors to a commercial retail space that is leased by the same building. She then stumbles past a mailbox and the video stops just as we see her approach the front door of the lobby. From photos it does look like it requires a key card to enter, so she was either buzzed in by the front desk or another resident let her in.

From the floor plan you can see that there are public restrooms and another room attached to it, which I would assume is a garbage room with a chute. I would imagine she walked right past the desk and straight to the bathrooms, and then found herself in the garbage room for some reason. Maybe the bathrooms were occupied, or many other reasons.

 

[Sillybilly]

I was finally able to find a ground floor floor plan.

<rsbm>

Would you please provide a link to the source of the floor plan. Thanks !!

 

[duckcat]

<rsbm>

Would you please provide a link to the source of the floor plan. Thanks !!

Yes! It was found here: https://www.framptonco.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Commercial_-540-West-28th-Street.jpg

 

[sunflowermomma]

I was finally able to find a ground floor floor plan. In the video we see her try to open doors to a commercial retail space that is leased by the same building. She then stumbles past a mailbox and the video stops just as we see her approach the front door of the lobby. From photos it does look like it requires a key card to enter, so she was either buzzed in by the front desk or another resident let her in.

From the floor plan you can see that there are public restrooms and another room attached to it, which I would assume is a garbage room with a chute. I would imagine she walked right past the desk and straight to the bathrooms, and then found herself in the garbage room for some reason. Maybe the bathrooms were occupied, or many other reasons.

Great find. I am super curious what the garbage room is like in such a high-end building - is there some kind of new, state-of-the-art trash chute that is disguised to blend in with the environment? I feel so bad for poor Jaclyn.

 

[scoodyboo]

Yes! It was found here: https://www.framptonco.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Commercial_-540-West-28th-Street.jpg

For context, here is another link; floorplan as posted above is at end of link if you scroll down:

540 W 28th Street | Chelsea, New York | Frampton Co

In the heart of Chelsea's Art District lies this stunning triplex penthouse unit that embodies a fusion of artistic splendor and minimalist atmosphere in its design.

www.framptonco.com

 

[ch_13]

For context, here is another link; floorplan as posted above is at end of link if you scroll down:

540 W 28th Street | Chelsea, New York | Frampton Co

In the heart of Chelsea's Art District lies this stunning triplex penthouse unit that embodies a fusion of artistic splendor and minimalist atmosphere in its design.

www.framptonco.com

I also see a second door in the upper right of the floorplan. This one appears to lead directly to the building staircase and perhaps to the basement as well. I imagine it's either an emergency exit or a locked door but could another resident have allowed Jackie access as they exited?

 

[Lusitana]

As someone who has been younger and has drank more than I should've many times, if there's no foul play involved then I don't think this is anyone's fault. Looking back, many of my nights out could've gone so wrong so quickly. R.I.P.

 

[Squirrel85]

That makes the most sense to me so far of the cab drop off. And explains why it looks like she is trying to enter buildings - was she looking for the subway entrance? Good thinking.

jmo

From my experience of being in Manhattan/Brooklyn... one uses the stairs at the street level, to reach the subway platform below. There are no doors to enter the subway, except at Grand Central Station.

(Edited to fix a sentence)

 

[Inthedetails]

From my experience of being in Manhattan/Brooklyn... one uses the stairs at the street level, to reach the subway platform below. There are no doors to enter the subway, except at Grand Central Station.

(Edited to fix a sentence)

Makes sense....when you're sober.

As was mentioned upthread, that neighborhood does have some nice subway stations that are more "corporate" looking than the usual green ball and stairs on the sidewalk. Some are in actual buildings.

We don't know what happened, but I do think searching for the subway is a possibility.

jmo

 

[Seni]

Yes! It was found here: https://www.framptonco.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Commercial_-540-West-28th-Street.jpg

Thanks for posting the plan.

Can you get the plan for higher floors?

IME chutes are available for the floors with apartments. Not for reception or ground floor.

 

[Seni]

10 storey building. How many apartments per floor?

They might be compacting rubbish twice a week?

Depends also what "compacting" means.

For the moment it doesnt sound like Jaclyn was found compacted. She was found before that process.

 

[sunflowermomma]

From my experience of being in Manhattan/Brooklyn... one uses the stairs at the street level, to reach the subway platform below. There are no doors to enter the subway, except at Grand Central Station.

(Edited to fix a sentence)

There are several other stations that have doors - especially in Brooklyn. I use one every day - L train

 

[duckcat]

Thanks for posting the plan.

Can you get the plan for higher floors?

IME chutes are available for the floors with apartments. Not for reception or ground floor.

I can’t speak to whether there is definitely a garbage room on the ground in that building, but given that the chute is a continuous system and the building isnt a hotel where things like that might be more hidden, I wouldn’t be surprised. The lobby area is fairly small and I’m sure the chute is used often by cleaners for the gym, courtyard etc. Doesn’t seem like much room there for garbage otherwise.

To the other entrance on the ground floor, I attached my interpretation of it. IMO every door past and including the secondary entrance would require a keycard, so she would definitely need to be lead by someone which doesn’t seem to be the case at the moment. It seems more reasonable that she was let in by the entrance where there was more activity and only one key carded door to bypass.

Lastly for the chute and compacting mechanism itself, I’ve looked up a few of these and all seem to be similar systems. The compacting mechanism is unfortunately implied with a chute system to prevent it from getting backed up, so that would happen immediately. It typically seems to auto sense, turns on, and then disposes into a container which a janitor eventually unloads and replaces. Here’s a link: https://i0.wp.com/nedland.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/trash-room-design.webp?fit=2048,1142&ssl=1

 

[Cryptic]

The subway is how people get around. I've had some bad experiences with cabbies, so that isn't a necessarily safe alternative.

Thanks for that local insight.

I had the tourist impression that cabs (ohh so marked- right?) in the general sense must be lower on the "iffyness" scale than the subways are in a general sense.

 

[Cryptic]

Assistance needed.....

Can a New Yorker provide a brief description of what a trash room is? Is the trash put down a chute to a compacting machine at a lower level?

And... if so, how big would such a chute be? Are there safety guards / cages to keep users from slipping into a dangerous area or machinery area?

I can see the poor girl wandering into the trash room. As a non New Yorker, however, I just cant visualize how she then fell into a dangerous portion of the room. Rather, my tourist visualization would be: Missing girl is found passed out, but safe and sound on the floor of the trash room.

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

Assistance needed.....

Can a New Yorker provide a brief description of what a trash room is? Is the trash put down a chute to a compacting machine at a lower level?

And... if so, how big would such a chute be? Are there safety guards / cages to keep users from slipping into a dangerous area or machinery area?

I can see the poor girl wandering into the trash room. As a non New Yorker, however, I just cant visualize how she then fell into a dangerous portion of the room. Rather, my tourist visualization would be: Missing girl is found passed out, but safe and sound on the floor of the trash room.

This seems like the normal size and look for the chutes in the buildings my friends and family live in NYC (with the exception of the red light on the top). I haven’t seen any safety guards or rails in the buildings I have seen so far. In NYC, there was a case of a 8-years old boy who fell down a garbage chute last year but survived and another case in which a young man in his 30s lowered his body into the chute to retrieve his keys while his friends held the chute door down for him. Tragically, the young man accidentally slipped into the chute and died from his injuries.

Along with the chute, the garbage room might contain a few recycling bins too and be a bit spacious. The doors aren’t usually locked so that it is easier for people to carry their heavy bags into the room without much struggle.