A man was found hanging in Huntington, Long Island on Monday morning (June 22). Suffolk County Police have not identified the victim or revealed his race. However, many area residents on Twitter have claimed the victim is a 53-year-old Black man. According to The Patch, the man was found hanging in a wooded area of Peter A. Nelson Park near Henry L Stimson Middle School.

The Suffolk County Police Department issued a statement on Facebook in regard to the rumors circulating about the hanging. According to the statement, police have ruled the man’s death as a suicide based on a preliminary investigation. However, an autopsy has not yet been conducted.

“The [Suffolk County Police Department] received a 911 call at approximately 7:20 a.m. on June 22 regarding an adult male hanging in the woods in Peter A. Nelson Park on Oakwood Road in West Hills,” the statement read.

“The death is being preliminarily classified as a non-criminal suicide based, in part, on evidence recovered at the scene and from the decedent’s residence, including a letter left for his family in his home which described his reasoning for his actions. An autopsy will be preformed by the Office of the Suffolk County Medical Examiner. The family has requested that their identity, and the identity of the decedent, be withheld.”

“As a matter of policy, the SCPD does not normally comment on non-criminal death investigations. The department investigates approximately 100 suicides annually,” the statement continued. “However, we are aware of rumors circulating on social media and throughout the community regarding this investigation, and believe that it is in the public’s interest to issue this statement to allay any fears and quell rumors with facts.”

The news was met with suspicion and outrage on Twitter, as the man’s death marks the latest of several hangings across the country. Earlier this month, a Black man identified as Dominique Alexander was found hanging from a tree in a Manhattan park.