The teen, identified as Leonardo Marmolejos, was discovered in the courtyard behind the building on Briggs Avenue in the Bedford Park section around 6:15 a.m. He was unconscious and wearing his pajamas.
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Authorities say it appears he fell from the fifth floor.
Marmolejos was rushed with traumatic injuries to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he later died.
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"I just brought him here in 2009," father Leonardo Marmolejos, Sr., said with tears streaming down his face. "His smile, his respect for people, just his manners."
Detectives are trying to determine how he fell, but it appears he climbed out of his window onto the fire escape.
His mother reported seeing him last around 1:20 a.m. Family and friends are heartbroken.
"I wish I just die now," his father said. "God take me."
A cousin tells Eyewitness News Marmolejos had just celebrated a birthday and had much to live for, and neighbors say their thoughts and prayers are with the family.
"He was just starting to live his life," neighbor Johana Cabrera said. "And I was like, this is so sad. I can't imagine. I'm a mother, and I can't imagine. Oh my God."
The investigation is ongoing, and the medical examiner will determine the official cause of death.