Trigger Warning: The article mentions details about a murder.
An unusual death in Florida left a family heartbroken, and now the family of the deceased has taken legal help to find out the truth.
The n–ed body of 32-year-old Helen Garay Massiell Sanchez, a Nicaraguan anesthesiologist, was discovered inside a freezer at a Dollar Tree store in Florida in December 2025.
The family has now filed a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit against the retailer.
The case sparked an investigation as the woman was found dead inside a walk-in freezer in an employee-only area. According to investigators, surveillance footage from December 13 shows Sanchez entering the store shortly before closing and walking directly into the storage area.
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According to The Atlanta Black Star, she reportedly remained there overnight until an employee found her body and called 911. Police say there is no evidence that mental illness played a role in Sanchez’s death.
Authorities have determined there was no foul play or any other substance abuse angle involved. While the cause of death has not been released, police said that Helen Garay Massiell Sanchez was inside the freezer on her own.
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In a statement to PEOPLE, a Dollar Tree spokesperson said the company continues to cooperate with authorities but declined to comment further about the legal proceedings and investigation.
“Our thoughts continue to be with the individual’s family and loved ones,” the spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, in the lawsuit cited by Law&Crime, Sanchez’s family alleges that Dollar Tree was negligent and failed to take reasonable steps to prevent her death.
Reportedly, the manager of the store was notified that Sanchez had not left the store and had gone missing. Yet, staff allegedly did not take action to locate or assist her.
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According to the filing, a customer allegedly urged the manager to review surveillance footage to help find Sanchez, but the manager refused and instructed employees not to review the clip.
The lawsuit further alleges that Dollar Tree failed to implement proper closing-time procedures to ensure all customers had exited the store before locking up the Florida store.
The popular chain is an American multi-price-point chain of discount variety stores ($1.25 or less). The retailer is known for seasonal and party merchandise. There are approximately 651 stores in Florida, which is much more than other states like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Illinois.
These stores mainly focus on household essentials, such as paper and cleaning products, over-the-counter drugs, essential groceries, health and beauty products, basic apparel, and infant care.
Considering the fact that Dollar Tree operates thousands of stores across various locations, including Canada, the Sanchez family also claims the freezer where Sanchez was found was defective and lacked basic safety mechanisms.
These included things such as an internal emergency release, latch, or alarm, which could have prevented the death. They have alleged that the staff were careless and did nothing to restrict customer access to the freezer.
“Dollar Tree was negligent and breached its duty of care,” the complaint states, citing failures in safety equipment, employee training, and store procedures.
As the family mourns Helen Sanchez’s death, they described her as a dedicated doctor who specialized in anesthesiology for congenital heart disease patients. She was devoted and “dedicated her life to medicine.”
She worked hard to make ends meet. Beyond her job, she was a mother to her two children, who are in Nicaragua. Ground News reported that GoFundMe organizers launched a fundraiser to send Sanchez’s body to Nicaragua for her two children.
