A photo of Leford Williams, center right, pictured with family members

An NYC man fatally overdosed in a Starbucks bathroom. It took his family 53 days to find him

WNYC News | Mar 20, 2023

It’s a family’s worst nightmare.

After years of battling addiction, Leford Williams, 55, fatally overdosed in a Starbucks bathroom in the East Village on a cocktail of fentanyl, methamphetamine and heroin. Police arrived, and EMS workers rushed him to Mount Sinai Hospital. But he couldn’t be saved.

But for 53 days in 2022, Williams’ family had no idea what happened to him. They searched the streets, parks, rehab centers and hospitals, not knowing if he was dead or alive. When his remains were finally returned to them, they were “badly decomposed,” according to a letter from the funeral parlor.

Read the full story on Gothamist.com.

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