NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Last week's fatal plunge of Bed Bath & Beyond chief financial officer Gustavo Arnal from a Manhattan building has been ruled a suicide.
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The city’s medical examiner made the determination on Monday, the New York Post reported. He died from multiple blunt trauma.
Bed Bath & Beyond confirmed Arnal’s death Sunday, two days after he fell from the so-called “Jenga building” at 56 Leonard St. in Tribeca.
“Gustavo will be remembered by all he worked with for his leadership, talent and stewardship of our Company. I am proud to have been his colleague, and he will be truly missed by all of us at Bed Bath & Beyond and everyone who had the pleasure of knowing him,” Harriet Edelman, independent chair of the company's board, said in a statement Sunday.
The 52-year-old exec was found unconscious Friday afternoon after falling from the 18th story of the luxury building. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Arnal jumped from his apartment while his wife was present but didn't say anything to her beforehand or leave a note, law enforcement sources told the Post.
Arnal joined Bed Bath & Beyond in May 2020 after previous stints at Avon, Walgreens Boots Alliance and Procter & Gamble. The company named Laura Crossen as interim CFO on Tuesday, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Arnal’s death came days after a class action lawsuit was filed Aug. 23 accusing him and activist investor Ryan Cohen of artificially inflating the company’s value in an alleged “pump and dump” scheme, Fortune reported.
Bed Bath & Beyond has faced turbulence recently: Its shares made a monstrous run from $5.77 to $23.08 over a little more than two weeks in August, in trading reminiscent of last year’s meme-stock craze, when out-of-favor companies suddenly became darlings of smaller-pocketed investors.
Just last Wednesday, the Union, New Jersey—based retailer said it will close about 150 of its namesake stores and slash its workforce by 20% in a bid to turn around its beleaguered business.
If you are in a crisis or have a family member or friend who needs help, you are not alone. Contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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