In New Jersey, USA, the Prosecutor of Morris County announced that the death of Ethiopian American man Amanuel Tamrat, whose body was found hanging on a tree in a park on June 28, was a suicide.
The investigation came after Black Lives Matter, a protest against police brutality and racial violence against black people, sent letters to the Attorney General’s office demanding an investigation on the death of the 20-year-old.
Amanuel’s death caused heavy speculation in the U.S., linking the case to the Black Lives Matter, following reportedly seven bodies of black people were found hanged across the country.
According to the prosecutor’s release on September 30, 2020, the teenager’s death has no connection with another person or group. The investigators also said that he had purchased a rope from a local store before the incident, and he made internet searches related to suicide.
Amanuel was born in Addis Ababa and moved to the U.S. after being adopted at the age of five by an American pastor and his family. He took Army Reserves training to be a military policeman and dreamed of a career in the FBI or CIA.
On June 30, 2020, Black Lives Matter organized a memorial where the teenager’s body was found, and several people attended the memorial. Additionally, more than 731,000 users signed a change.org petition demanding officials to investigate Amanuel’s death.
