They did not share "eyewitness reports" by any means. They mentioned them. NYPD is pretty tightlipped about evidence or witness statements. On the whole, the public finds out about information very near the close of an investigation or when documents are released in courts.
Look at Joseph Cominale or Lisa Velasquez, the dismembered woman in the Bronx or Lesandro Guzman-Feliz,the young man macheted in the Bronx. The police gave out little on these cases and, then, arrests were made, and, then, surprise, there were more arrests made. The amount of information on Mr. Cominale's death was not fully made public until the trial. It is only when we see court filings that we get a sense on what they were holding back. It is common practice in NY that bodies are not moved from a scene until the scene is cleared by the ME, which may account for the women being separated and photographed. There is a lot to be desired when it comes to NYC on any given day but the investigations of murders are generally where the NYPD tends to shine. In the case of these young women, NYPD sent people to VA to ask questions--- a phone call might have done for some departments. NYPD has many high profile targets and high risk situations that they deal with. I can't imagine they are being buffaloed into a suicide determination when there is a murder. They would absolutely want the credit for id'ing a murder if there was one. The ME is not one to let things go either-- that office has been sifting and resifting and running DNA to identify minute samples in order to id anyone else they can from the Sept. 11 attacks. This not a small operation or departments with no cash. If this was a murder I believe they will find the truth.
I hope so. Given the highly unusual fact patterns involved in this case, i am just shocked that the NYPD has been so quick to allude to suicide as the likely cause of deaths.
I have a high regard for the NYPD so this post isn’t meant to knock them, but I also think it’s a bit naive of posters (not insinuating you, Kaen...a couple others a ways back in the thread) who discount (“conspiracy theory”) the fact that there may be some geopolitical factors/pressures at play in a case like this. The 3 issues that I struggle with the most are:
1) Usually, 12 days into an investigation, even when police are being tightlipped, the press has put together a high-level profile of the individuals involved. With this case, there is still almost nothing known about Rotana and Tala - No digital footprint; no friends, classmates, acquaintances who have come out to say they know even the slightest bit about them (e.g. “I took a class with her. She seemed nice but kept to herself.”; etc).
2) I have zero forensic psychology experience, but the profile that we do know - 16/22 (or maybe 23?) year old women > no digital footprint for first 3 years in US > spending spree in NY for 60 days while looking “healthy” > taping themselves together as part of a joint drowning suicide in the Hudson River - just feels like it has disconnects to me.
3) How do 2 people with duct tape wrapped around their ankles and waists physically get themselves into the Hudson River?? Did they roll in from the grass over the rocks along the embankment? Did they tape themselves on the rocks and tip over - would that get you far enough out to catch the current? And as others have mentioned, where is the left over duct tape, scissors, etc?
Additional Questions. . .
**As Sherlock previously asked, who identified the bodies? One article referenced that the Mom did based on the sketch (which, as Sherlock noted, looks nothing like Tala and Rotana’s passport photos). Or did the Dad? The Arab news article references that he arrived in New York on Oct 26th, but they seem to be intentionally vague about the Dad in the press conference.
**There are hundreds of people walking their dogs and going for morning runs along Riverside Park at 7a. Have there been any corroborating reports of people having seen this “haunting” scene of the girls praying? Presumably no witnesses who would have witnessed the far more haunting visual of two girls duct taped together rolling/falling into the Hudson together in broad daylight? Even for desensitized New Yorkers, that scene would be startling.
**The Saudi Consulate references Rotana and Tala as being “students accompanying their brother in Washington DC.” What exactly does that mean, especially in the context of their mom living in Fairfax as well (and their Dad also being referenced in the “alleged” abuse cases that put the girls in “shelter-like” facility, as well as his reportedly traveling back and forth between SA and US at least on occasion)? Who is the brother?
**Exactly when (date/time) and where did Rotana and Tala submit their request for asylum? And what CC/video/etc evidence exists after this event?
**If they spent all 60 nights at hotels in NYC (plus food and shopping), then it’s easily $15k of expenses. As others have asked, if so, who’s the guarantor on the CC? If they didn’t stay at hotels the entire time, where else did they stay? Where did they stay the night of Oct 23rd?
**What is the “shelter-like” facility in which the girls allegedly stayed for the 9 months leading up to their NYC trip and what triggered their decision to leave for NYC (different articles have referenced different reasons for the latter)?