Body found hanging near Staten Island school

A body was found hanging from a park fence behind a Staten Island middle school Thursday morning, the NYPD said.

A custodian at I.S. 51 reported the body to police around 7:18 a.m., according to an NYPD spokeswoman. The body, which was not identified, was that of a man between 40 and 50 years old and was hung with rope on a fence in Markham Playground, which is behind the school. There was no trauma to the body, but a medical examiner will determine the cause of death, an NYPD spokeswoman said.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Education said the agency provided counseling services at the school.