SUNY Oneonta mourns death of student from Capital Region

Police are investigating the death of a SUNY Oneonta student. NewsChannel 13 has learned he’s from the Capital Region.

Police say the body of 20-year-old Tyler Lopresti-Castro was found Thursday morning near a bus garage. He was taken to the hospital, where he died.

Tyler is a graduate of Columbia High School in East Greenbush.

Columbia High School Athletics posted a message saying Tyler made a huge impact on the school.

Police reviewed area surveillance video. They say the video from the bus garage finds that he emerged from a wooded area behind the garage around 2:15 a.m. They say Tyler may have walked off the roadway at the eastbound off-ramp on a highway, climbing through the snow and crossing a drainage creek.

SUNY Oneonta tells NewsChannel 13 he suffered from injuries related to exposure to the cold weather.

WNYT touched based with Edna Sheldon. She knew Lopresti-Castro. She did not feel comfortable speaking on camera, but sent us a statement.

"I have known him since kindergarten and was his lunch monitor. He was a great kid and had lots of fun memories with him."

The school sent NewsChannel 13 a statement saying in part:

"This is a very sad time for SUNY Oneonta. Our campus community is mourning the loss of one of our own, and we are focused on providing support to the student’s family and friends. Our hearts go out to them, and we are providing whatever assistance we can to help them during this difficult time."

Wednesday was the first day of SUNY Oneonta’s spring semester.