GUILTY COSTA RICA - Carla Stefaniak, 36, American tourist, San Antonio de Escazú, 27 Nov 2018

[Hatfield]

Body Found in Costa Rica Amid Search for Missing Miami Woman

Body found

Oh no. If the body is hers then it almost sounds like she never left in any car. Or she did leave and the perp dumped her body right back in same area where she was staying.

"The body was found in the back of the Airbnb property where Carla Stefaniak had been staying, officials with Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department said."

Body Found in Costa Rica Amid Search for Missing Miami Woman

 

[Mica]

Oh no. If the body is hers then it almost sounds like she never left in any car. Or she did leave and the perp dumped her body right back in same area where she was staying.

"The body was found in the back of the Airbnb property where Carla Stefaniak had been staying, officials with Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department said."

Body Found in Costa Rica Amid Search for Missing Miami Woman

If this is Carla, I don’t believe she ever left the property.

 

[Satchie]

Oh no. If the body is hers then it almost sounds like she never left in any car. Or she did leave and the perp dumped her body right back in same area where she was staying.

"The body was found in the back of the Airbnb property where Carla Stefaniak had been staying, officials with Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department said."

Body Found in Costa Rica Amid Search for Missing Miami Woman

I always thought there were 2 possibilities, either the security guard(s) were lying, or the Uber driver was lying and had picked her up earlier and then come back to establish an alibi. It appears it was the first scenario. Sigh.

 

[Satchie]

If this is Carla, I don’t believe she ever left the property.

Agree, that was a lie to send police away. I wonder, how complicit was the owner, it sounds like he didn't cooperate with police.

 

[zecats]

Body Found in Costa Rica Amid Search for Missing Miami Woman

Body found

Oh boy. If it's her, it's definitely more than a kidnapping.

 

[Mica]

Agree, that was a lie to send police away. I wonder, how complicit was the owner, it sounds like he didn't cooperate with police.

They need to look at the owner, security guards, and Uber driver who all said she left at 5:00 AM. All told the same story.

 

[iluvmua]

I bet it is her. Who else would it be?

 

[Cryptic]

Oh no. If the body is hers then it almost sounds like she never left in any car. Or she did leave and the perp dumped her body right back in same area where she was staying.

"The body was found in the back of the Airbnb property where Carla Stefaniak had been staying, officials with Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department said."

Body Found in Costa Rica Amid Search for Missing Miami Woman

This is awful.

As to whether she left or not, I wonder if the other residences in the area (upscale with a lot of security) would have private cameras with views of the streets? In either case, the security guard preferably needs to be taken into custody while the investigation continues. Though this is not permissible in our system, other nations, including European ones, allow for detaining a suspect up to say 30 days with out charges while an investigation proceeds.

Hopefully, any suspect is a Costa Rican citizen. Costa Rica is a stable, prosperous nation by regional standards. As a result, it has a number of immigrants (both legal and illegal) from neighboring countries. An immigrant suspect could easily "disappear" back to their far more chaotic home countries located nearby. Finding him would be hard.

They need to look at the owner, security guards, and Uber driver who all said she left at 5:00 AM. All told the same story.

I believe two of those three parties (owner and scheduled Uber driver) were simply relating what the security guard told them. So, it could well be only one party claiming a 5:00 am departure.

 

[Elainera]

Oh no

It's most likely her imo. Why did it take 5 days to find her if she was only partially buried? Did they not search the property until now?

I can imagine what happened to her and it's horrific

 

[Satchie]

This is awful.

As to whether she left or not, I wonder if the other residences in the area (upscale with a lot of security) would have private cameras with views of the streets? In either case, the security guard preferably needs to be taken into custody while the investigation continues. Though this is not permissible in our system, other nations, including European ones, allow for detaining a suspect up to say 30 days with out charges while an investigation proceeds.

Hopefully, any suspect is a Costa Rican citizen. Costa Rica is a stable, prosperous nation by regional standards. As a result, it has a number of immigrants (both legal and illegal) from neighboring countries. An immigrant suspect could easily "disappear" back to their far more chaotic home countries located nearby. Finding him would be hard.

So, you tell police she left but they find her body on the property. You're the security guard, it's your job to control who enters and exits the property. You, and usually your dogs, regularly patrol the property to keep out intruders. Who else could possibly have killed and buried her, unless you're covering up for your boss?

 

[whitelilac]

Oh what horrible news ! Right there behind the airbnb?
So likely never even left at 5 am.....ugh.
Security guard(s) ?
Did the owner live on the premises?
For now I don't suspect the Uber driver....he could have done some the day before.... I think.
How very sad

 

[alreetlike]

It's most likely her imo. Why did it take 5 days to find her if she was only partially buried? Did they not search the property until now?

I hope they didn't delay searching the property because of the whole "she left voluntarily" thing.

This isn't looking good for the security guards and the rest of the 5am crew.

 

[Razz]

Well, if she was murdered, it probably happened on the property. Maybe there was a back exit where the body was taken and quickly buried. (Where no cameras would have been to film the removal.) If so, this certainly narrows down the likely suspect(s).

 

[zecats]

Oh no

It's most likely her imo. Why did it take 5 days to find her if she was only partially buried? Did they not search the property until now?

I can imagine what happened to her and it's horrific

Carla Stefaniak: Body found on property in Costa Rica where missing Florida woman was staying

"The body was partially buried in a mountainous area located in the back of the property, less than 200 feet away from where Stefaniak was staying. OIJ agents had been searching the area with specialized dogs."

ETA Still not confirmed it's her by the authorities.

 

[retiredrickyinCO]

Such a sad situation if this is indeed her which I assume it is. I know she claimed to be a "well seasoned traveler" but there are a few things that are uncomfortable to me with her being alone there once her sister in law left. Sometimes things are out of our control but one has to remember this is Costa Rica. I think at a minimum, if I was traveling alone, I would have used a licensed reputable taxi company as well as staying in a recognized hotel chain with security as opposed to an unregulated Airbnb with quite a few negative reviews. After all it is only for 1 night. Just try to make your surrounding environment as safe as possible. JMO

 

[moonriverfarm]

I bet whatever happened coincided with the power outage.

 

[zecats]

I bet whatever happened coincided with the power outage.

Yes indeed. And going to ask the guard for some water. jmo

And I wonder where he would have had to go to get water. And then he would knock on her door to deliver. All alone in a darkened apartment.

 

[Elainera]

Carla Stefaniak: Body found on property in Costa Rica where missing Florida woman was staying

"The body was partially buried in a mountainous area located in the back of the property, less than 200 feet away from where Stefaniak was staying. OIJ agents had been searching the area with specialized dogs."

ETA Still not confirmed it's her by the authorities.

Ah. So not found on the property itself.

So now the "5am crew", as alreetlike dubbed them, can still stick to their story.

 

[Cryptic]

So, you tell police she left but they find her body on the property. You're the security guard, it's your job to control who enters and exits the property. You, and usually your dogs, regularly patrol the property to keep out intruders. Who else could possibly have killed and buried her, unless you're covering up for your boss?

Then factor in that at even a moderate sized Airbnb, the security guard could well have known that the attractive woman's travelling companion had already left and that she was, therefore, probably alone. My guess is that his interest increased when she asked him, or another guard for a bottled water.

 

[Mica]

I bet whatever happened coincided with the power outage.

Was the power outage even from the rain? I read a comment under an article that there was very little rain that day. Although, there could be sporadic storms in different areas of CR. But if not, I wonder if the power was intentionally shut off in Carla’s villa and of it was even Carla texting at the time.