The friends of Bart Palosz, a 15-year-old Greenwich High School student who committed suicide last week, said he was bullied for years, CNN reported.
Palosz, a Polish immigrant, killed himself with his family's shotgun after his first day of sophomore year on Aug. 27. According to his friends, he was bullied for his accent and his size, standing at 6 feet and 3 inches tall.
Friends remembered him as "a little awkward in his body" but nonetheless a "giant sweetheart." Lisa Johnson, whose son Izzy was friends with Palosz, gave an emotional eulogy at his funeral on Friday.
"'Bart was one of the kindest kids I had ever met. ... It was a life-changing friendship for Izzy," Johnson said. "Bart was two years older, and he was so kind, funny, and refreshingly different from any kid Izzy had ever been around. Our family is absolutely devastated by the loss of Bart in our lives.'"
Johnson also said that while Palosz did not display any signs of a troubled child, his family was aware of their son's bullying and tried everything in their power to alert the school district.
Kim Eves, the communications director of the Greenwich School District, said the administration is "looking at the entire history in his experiences in our school that is an ongoing investigation."
After his suicide, some of Palosz's social media accounts reflected signs of trouble, specifically on Google Plus. In June, he posted a picture of himself with a knife and wrote "Hey if I were to stab my eye out due to school caused insanity, who would miss me?"
In July, he wrote another troubling post.
"I notice if I sound sad I'm normal and if I act happy, cheerful, and 'normal' there is a high chance that I will try to poison myself, cut myself, commit suicide, or jump in front of a truck :)" the post read.
Police said the gun Palosz used to commit suicide was owned by his family and secured in a gun locker at home.
"The incident continues to be investigated by members of the Greenwich Police Detective Division," a police statement said.
The Palosz family has flown back to Poland to bury their son and have not commented on his death.
