A peeved parent demanded answers today from the principal of a Harlem school following the funeral for 12-year-old drowning victim Nicole Suriel.
“Tell the truth. Tell the truth,” David Suker shouted at Principal José Maldonado-Rivera, head of Columbia Secondary School, as the two men left the 10 a.m. service at Church of the Annunciation in West Harlem.
Suker’s hounding of Maldonado-Rivera forced cops to escort the principal to his waiting car, where Suker again confronted him.
“You are the only one responsible for this tragedy,” the parent screamed.
Suker, 42, has a daughter in the eighth-grade at Columbia Secondary School and is co-president of the parents association. He is not related to the Suriel family.
“Obviously we are dealing with the family’s suffering and our own suffering,” responded Maldonado-Rivera before driving off.
Nicole, a sixth-grader at the school, was on a class trip Tuesday with 23 classmates and three adult chaperones when strong currents pulled her under. Her body was recovered 90 minutes later.
“No swimming” and “no lifeguard” signs are posted about the boardwalk and Nicole’s parents claim they did not sign a permission slip.
The Long Beach Police Department has launched a criminal probe into the tragedy.