Cause of Death Revealed for Mom of 2 Found Dead in Dollar Tree Freezer

Helen Massiell Garay Sanchez, 32, was found dead inside a freezer at a Dollar Tree store in Miami on Dec. 14, 2025

NEED TO KNOW

  • The cause of death for a woman who was found dead inside a freezer at a Dollar Tree in Miami has been revealed
  • Helen Massiell Garay Sanchez, a 32-year-old mother of two, was found dead inside a freezer at the discount store on Dec. 14, 2025
  • Authorities previously said Sanchez climbed inside the freezer the night prior and was there overnight, before being found by employee at around 8:00 a.m.

The cause of death for a mother of two found dead inside a freezer at a Dollar Tree in Miami has released.

Helen Massiell Garay Sanchez, 32, was found dead inside a freezer at the discount store on SW 8th Street on Dec. 14, 2025, PEOPLE previously reported.

On Wednesday, Feb. 11, Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Sanchez’s cause of death as environmental hypothermia, with ethanol use being a contributory cause, according to local media outlets NBC6, WPLG and the Miami Herald.

Sanchez’s ethanol levels were found to be at 0.112% in her toxicology report, per NBC6. A reading of ocular fluid ethanol was also at 0.156%, according to WPLG…

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