Young black man found hanged from tree in California; cops suspect suicide

A 24-year-old black man was found dead and hanging from a tree Wednesday morning in Palmdale, Calif., police said.

Robert Fuller’s death is under investigation, according to a press release from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Police said evidence indicates that he died by suicide.

Officials said a coroner performed two autopsies, both of which pointed to suicide, local NBC affiliate KNBC reported. Fuller’s family said he left no note and posted nothing online.

Police said a passerby noticed Fuller’s body at around 3:45 a.m. Wednesday in the northern Los Angeles suburb and called 911.

The lack of any video evidence, despite traffic cameras on the street that don’t actually record, according to LAist, has led many to question the official reports.

Dozens of people demonstrated outside Palmdale City Hall on Friday, LAist reported. They demanded a full investigation and denounced city officials for releasing the “preliminary” cause of Fuller’s death before one was complete.

“Words can’t describe how much my family is hurting right now,” Fuller’s sister Diamond Alexander wrote in a Facebook post Thursday. “Today we just got word that Robert’s body was found hanging in a tree out in Palmdale. It’s still under investigation. If anyone has seen anything please come forward.”

Alexander also set up a GoFundMe in Fuller’s memory, which had raised more than $120,000 as of Friday night. A hashtag #JusticeforRobertFuller trended nationwide on Twitter.