Man Found Dead Near Belt Parkway, Possible Drug Overdose

A 29-year-old man found dead outside a building near the Belt Parkway this morning may have died of a drug overdose, according to authorities.

The medical examiner will determine the cause of death. However, cops say the man was found fully clothed, with no signs of trauma, outside a building on East 11th Street, near Banner Avenue, at 9:23am. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the FDNY. The identity of the deceased was not provided.

During a town hall in Bay Ridge this week, Mayor Bill de Blasio described the illicit drug epidemic in southern Brooklyn as “a very profound problem that’s going to take a lot of work.” Unintentional drug overdoses in New York City now outnumber both homicide and motor vehicle fatalities, according to a city report issued last year.

During the town hall, the mayor pointed out that Thrive NYC, a mental health initiative spearheaded by the his wife, has made Naloxone — a drug that can temporarily revive people who have overdosed on opioids — available at 16 local pharmacies.

Update [February 19, 5:30pm]: News 12 Brooklyn reports the body was found outside a vacant property often used by squatters.