What happened to Drexyll Tolstoy? Tattoo artist missing for six months found dead behind workplace

Missing tattoo artist Drexyll Tolstoy, from New York City, was found dead on April 3, six months after he was reported missing. As per The New York Daily News, the body of the 27-year-old was found in 39 W. 32nd St. behind a building in NYC.

In a statement obtained by People Magazine, a New York Police Department spokesperson said that Drexyll Tolstoy was discovered "with injuries indicative of falling from an elevated position."

According to Drexyll's mother, Kellie Tolstoy, the 17-story business building includes the tattoo shop where her son worked before his death. While speaking to the Daily News, Kellie said:

"How was he found right there? He was there the whole time. He's been laying there for six months."

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Drexyll Tolstoy was reported missing by his girlfriend

While speaking with the Daily News, Kristian Gonzalez previously revealed that Drexyll Tolstoy, her boyfriend of 10 years, had plans to see the film Bullet Train on the night he was last seen.

"He told me that he was at the movies around 9 or so, and that was the last I heard of him."

Authorities, however, stated that the film was not shown at the time. The next morning, when Tolstoy did not report to work, Kristian reported him missing. According to CW affiliate WPIX, police initially shared that Drexyll was last seen on September 25 near West 106th Street and Columbus Avenue on Manhattan's Upper West Side.

They later found CCTV footage from a nearby hotel that showed Drexyll at his workplace, Black Fish Tattoo Parlor, later that evening. At the time, he was residing on the Upper West Side.

While speaking to the Daily News, Kellie Tolstoy revealed that her late son had changed his medications for his altering mood a week before he was reported missing, and that he struggled with depression and relationship issues during the COVID-19 pandemic.

She additionally revealed that she spoke to her son on September 25 wherein Drexyll told her he "couldn't go back" to the Upper West Side apartment he shared with his girlfriend. The deceased man's family came to New York City to search for him in December 2022 but were unsuccessful at the time. Four months later, his body was found near where he was last seen.

Kellie launched a GoFundMe campaign several months ago to raise money to locate her son. In an update, she wrote:

"It shouldn't take six months to find someone hundreds of feet away from where they disappeared."

The mother also shared that authorities had to use dental records to identify the body. As of writing, the cause of Drexyll Tolstoy's death has not been revealed.