A respected New York City real estate agent jumped to his death from his Upper East Side apartment building while in the middle of selling an heiress' home.
Tom Cooper, 56, died when he landed on the sidewalk in front of 18 East 67th Street, near Madison Avenue, just before 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.
He left a suicide note, police said, before jumping in front of shocked onlookers who thought the impact was a bag of laundry until they saw the body.
The Douglas Elliman agent was selling the $3.7 million copy owned by billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison's daughter, filmmaker Meghan Ellison, when he died.
Tom Cooper, 56, a respected real estate agent in New York City, jumped to his death from his Upper East Side apartment building
He died when he landed on the sidewalk in front of 18 East 67th Street, near Madison Avenue, just before 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Cooper's last social media post was of him standing next to a Christmas tree in the lobby of the historic building that houses the apartment, along with two others that he was also selling.
“The beautiful lobby of the police building at 240 Center St!” he wrote on Friday.
Cooper also recently helped sell a six-story, 9,000-square-foot townhouse at 24 West 10th Street for $18.5 million.
“Absolutely thrilled for my wonderful buyers who can now call this stately brownstone in Greenwich Village their home. Truly a beautiful home, and part of New York City history!' he wrote on Instagram.
Cooper's sister is on her way to New York to be with his 'devastated' family and friends.
A witness said one of Cooper's distraught neighbors ran from the building after seeing him several days earlier.
“A neighbor came out and said he had just spent Christmas Eve with him and he said it was the best Christmas Eve he had ever had,” the witness told police. New York Post.
Cooper's last social media post was of him standing next to a Christmas tree in the lobby of the historic police building that houses three apartments he sold
In the hours after the man was found, police investigators were speaking with building officials
Another witness described how Cooper hit his head on a green wooden construction wall and then landed on his back on the sidewalk.
He had a cut on his forehead and the side of his head, the witness said.
It is believed Cooper jumped from the fourth floor, where he lived in apartment 4A, and a window could be seen half open from the street below.
Photos of the scene taken around this time showed blood on the sidewalk.
First responders rushed Cooper to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Cooper was the lead cop at the apartment of Meghan Ellison and two others in the historic 1909 building that was the NYPD headquarters until 1973.
It was converted into luxury apartments and was home to supermodels Cindy Crawford and Linda Evangelista, along with famous fashion designer Calvin Klein.
The top-floor apartment measures 1,700 square feet, including a master bedroom with a soaring rotunda-style dome dominating the space.
Cooper's listing noted that it could be combined with the $3.5 million, two-bedroom, 1,550-square-foot unit next door, for a combined cost of $7.2 million.
He also sold a three-bedroom apartment on the third floor for just $6.5 million.
Cooper was the lead officer in the apartment of Meghan Ellison (Cooper in the photo) and two others in the historic 1909 building that was the NYPD headquarters until 1973.
A witness said one of Cooper's distraught neighbors ran from the building after seeing him several days earlier
First responders rushed the man to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Cooper's own luxury building dates from 1905 and is divided into eight private units. In 2022, one unit was rented for $9,000 per month.
Cooper is the latest New Yorker to jump out of swanky Manhattan buildings in recent weeks.
Last week, a 35-year-old woman died after jumping from a high-rise known as The Brittany, near Mayor Eric Adams' Gracie Mansion home.
In October, a 47-year-old man jumped to his death from the Gotham Hotel in Midtown. Over the summer, three men died within two days of committing suicide.
One of those men died when he jumped from a luxury high-rise.
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, call the Suicide Prevention hotline on 988 or visit SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.