Police are working to identify the body of a woman whose body they say they recovered from the waters in Bush Park in Sunset Park Sunday morning.
A cause of death investigation is now underway to determine if the body recovered at 7:57 a.m. was killed at the park or at another location.
Sunset Park residents told News 12they were shocked to hear of the body being recovered in the park. They say they have seen increasing violence in the area, as well as suspicious activity in the park in recent years.
"I feel less safe, knowing that a woman was found in the water a block and a half from my house. Makes me worry for my girlfriend," said resident Antonio Garcia.
Garcia added thathe'd like to see more police presence in the park at night, as well as the lighting in the park to be on as the sun goes down. He claims many of the lights in the park are no longer functional.
"This park, there are no patrols at night. It's just a vacant area," he said.
Others in the park said they were shocked to see the police tape in an area near where parents often walk with their dogs or young children. They added that the park does have areas that locals know not to go to.
"There's like a part of the new build where the path goes into the trees, and I always see trash and I think there are tents, so I try not to be here," said resident Sophia Chan.
Chan said she would never go to the park at night and does not feel comfortable at the shoreline near the water.
"When I've been there at night, that's when I have had to call 911 multiple times," she said.
Police had not released the identity of the victim as of Sunday evening as they worked to contact her family.
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