New Delhi - Miss Universe 2021 Harnaaz Sandhu is heartbroken after hearing about the sudden demise of Miss USA 2019 Cheslie Kryst.
The 30-year-old beauty queen, lawyer, fashion blogger and Extra TV correspondent fell from a "higher elevation" of a 60-story condominium in New York City just after 7am on Sunday, January 30, and was pronounced dead at the scene, an NYPD spokesperson told E! News.
Taking to her Instagram Stories on Monday, Harnaaz shared a beautiful picture in which she can be seen sharing smiles with Cheslie after her victory at the 70th Miss Universe 2021, held in Eilat, Israel.
Further, she penned, "This is heartbreaking and unbelievable, you were always an inspiration to many. Rest In Peace Cheslie."
As per E! News, the NYPD has shared that the death of Kryst, who lived on the ninth floor, appears to be a suicide, adding that a medical examiner has yet to determine the official cause.
Former Miss Universe Zozi Tunzi also took to social media to share her devastation at the passing of her close friend. The two struck up a close bond during Tunzi’s reign in 2019.
Kryst was born in Jackson, Michigan in 1991 and grew up in South Carolina. She attended the University of South Carolina and in 2017, graduated from Wake Forest University School of Law. She worked as a lawyer at North Carolina firm Poyner Spruill LLP as a civil litigator. She also founded the women's business apparel blog White Collar Glam.
In 2019, she won the title of Miss North Carolina USA and after being crowned Miss USA 2019, she took a sabbatical from work.
In 2020, her firm appointed her its first diversity advisor. Also in 2019, Kryst began working as a New York correspondent for Extra.