Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)

[texasmom]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/rebecca-nalepa-found-hanging-jonah-shacknai-mansion_n_899435.html?icid=main%7Chtmlws-main-n%7Cdl1%7Csec3_lnk3%7C218988
      
Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai

By ELLIOT SPAGAT   07/14/11 07:11 PM ET    


SAN DIEGO -- A woman found dead at a historic mansion was nude and hanging from a balcony with her hands tied behind her back and her feet bound, investigators said Thursday.

Rebecca Nalepa, 32, was discovered at the Coronado home of her boyfriend, Jonah Shacknai, chairman and chief executive of Medicis Pharmaceuticals Corp., an Arizona company that makes acne and facial wrinkle treatments.

Investigators have not determined if Nalepa was a crime victim and have not ruled out suicide, said San Diego County sheriff's Capt. Tim Curran. He declined to comment on the evidence.

"This is a very bizarre death, there's no doubt about it," Curran said at a news conference. "There is roughly 200 years of experience in the sheriff's homicide unit, and they all agree these are very unusual circumstances."

Shacknai's brother, Adam, called 911 Wednesday to report the woman appeared to be dead, Curran said. The brother was staying in a mansion guesthouse. Jonah Shacknai was not at home.

Curran said sheriff's investigators have not established any connection between the woman's death and a serious injury at the home two days earlier to Jonah Shacknai's 6-year-old son with his ex-wife.

On Monday, paramedics found the boy was not breathing and did not have a pulse after falling down some stairs, said Coronado Police Chief Louis Scanlon.

The boy was being treated at Rady's Children's Hospital San Diego. Hospital spokesman Carlos Delgado declined to comment Thursday on his condition.

"At that time, and at this time, we have no information that would lead us to believe that this is anything other than a tragic accident with the child," Scanlon said.

 ::snipping2::
Edit to add "suicide" to subject line. MB

[MOMDET]

Wowee Tex...thanks for sharing.  This sounds like something out of a movie.  Are there any articles on they little boy's accident?  How is he doing?  Keep us updated.  This sounds like it could be quite a mystery!   

[pharlap]

http://www.wmctv.com/story/15091608/memphian-discovers-body-in-brothers-san-diego-mansion

Not an update, but a news video...

Wonder what really happened...

[MOMDET]

I am hoping more details will be released on this.  It appears to be to "coincidental" to me.  I am not a strong believer in "coincidences".  I hope the little boy is out of the coma.  Has anyone heard?

[MuffyBee]

I am hoping more details will be released on this.  It appears to be to "coincidental" to me.  I am not a strong believer in "coincidences".  I hope the little boy is out of the coma.  Has anyone heard?

Little Max died.   

http://abcnews.go.com/US/spreckels-mansion-death-boy-max-schacknai-dies/story?id=14097880
Spreckels Mansion Boy Max Shacknai, 6, Dies From Injuries
Millionaire Jonah Shacknai, already grieving for his girlfriend who was found hanged in his California mansion last week, has said that his young son has died from injuries suffered in the mansion.

Max Shacknai, 6, was injured at the historic Spreckels mansion in Coronado, Calif., last Monday. He was rushed to the hospital with serious injuries and his death was announced Sunday.

Two days after Max was injured, Jonah Shacknai's girlfriend Rebecca Zahau was found dead, hanging naked from a balcony at the mansion.

Police are investigating whether Zahau's death was a murder or a suicide. During a press conference last week San Diego Sheriff spokesman Tim Curran said the crime scene appeared "suspicious."

At the time they did not believe there was a connection between Zahau's death and Max's injuries.
 ::snipping2::

[MuffyBee]

http://www.kxan.com/dpps/news/national/west/arizona-ceos-son-girlfriend-die-within-a-week-nt11-jgr_3885404
CEO's son, girlfriend die within a week
Investigators decline to discuss evidence
July 19, 2011

CORONADO, Calif. (AP) — Residents of a wealthy San Diego suburb known for its safe streets, world-class beaches and small-town feel are shocked by two mysterious deaths within a week, both tied to a historic mansion.

The first came when Rebecca Zahau, the 32-year-old girlfriend of Arizona pharmaceuticals tycoon Jonah Shacknai was found dead Wednesday, her nude body hanging from balcony of his Coronado home, her wrists and ankles bound.

Two days earlier, Shacknai's son, Max, 6, who was being cared for by Zahau, fell down the stairs and was hospitalized. His parents said late Sunday that he died from his injuries.

Investigators say the son's death was an accident. They say Zahau's death is suspicious, but haven't ruled out suicide. Authorities repeated Monday they haven't established any link between the boy's fall and the woman's death.
 ::snipping2::
"Suicides can appear odd," San Diego County Sheriff's Sgt. Roy Frank said. "It's not unusual to have a suicide that appears to be something else."
 ::snipping2::
Zahau was at home with another woman, whom authorities won't identify, when Max fell down the stairs last Monday, Coronado Police Chief Louis Scanlon said. Paramedics found he wasn't breathing and did not have a pulse. He was treated at Rady Children's Hospital San Diego.

Scanlon called the boy's fall a "tragic accident."

Ted Greenberg, owner of Camp Diggity Dog, said Zahau called the Coronado kennel last Monday, shortly after the boy's fall, to ask that someone pick up her 14-month-old Weimaraner, Ocean. She said her child was hospitalized after an injury.

"She described it as her child," he said.

Greenberg went to the home Tuesday.

"She was crying on the phone on Monday and Tuesday she was quiet," he said.

Shacknai's brother, Adam, called 911 Wednesday to report that Zahau appeared to be dead, investigators said. The brother was staying in a mansion guesthouse. Jonah Shacknai was not at home.

On Sunday, Jonah Shacknai and his ex-wife, Dina, Max's mother, announced that their son had died from his injuries.
 ::snipping2::

[cookie]

This is tragic!
In my opinion, there is not a woman in the world who would commit suicide in the nude!

[Shell]

I wonder if Shacknai's brother, Adam, was living on the grounds of the mansion when the boy had his accident. Adam was the one who found the girlfriends body hanging...so he is my first person of interest. Just my first reaction. Tonight (I think) Dr. Drew is doing a segment on it.

[MuffyBee]

http://news.lalate.com/2011/07/20/rebecca-nalepa-has-police-secrecy-helped-the-investigation/
Rebecca Nalepa – Has Police Secrecy Helped The Investigation?
July 20, 2011

[MuffyBee]

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/125764328.html
Forensics Key in Solving Mansion Mystery
July 19, 2011

Forensic evidence will be key in determining whether the death of a woman at a Coronado mansion was a suicide or a homicide.
 ::snipping2::
On Sunday, Shacknai announced his 6-year-old son Max died from injuries he sustained in a fall Monday at the same home.

Coronado police are investigating the child’s death. San Diego County sheriff’s investigators are investigating Zahau’s death. It has not been determined whether the two cases are related. Both departments are working to determine what may have happened in the days before the two deaths.
 ::snipping2::
Sheriff’s investigators are being extremely methodical in the investigation while going over evidence found in and around the home said Sgt. Roy Frank.

There are no suspects or persons of interest in the case that has yet to be classified as a suicide or homicide. Everyone who has been interviewed is considered a witness Frank said. Everyone has cooperated with detectives he said.

Jonah Shacknai’s brother Adam found Zahau’s nude body and called 911. She was hanging from a rope on a second-floor balcony with her hands tied behind her back and her feet bound deputies said.

Max Shacknai was not breathing after a fall down some stairs on July 11, said Coronado Police Chief Louis Scanlon.
 ::snipping2::
The family asked that any memorial contributions honoring Max be made to Whispering Hope Ranch Foundation either by mail to 9045 E. Pima Center Parkway, Scottsdale, AZ 85258, or via their website, www.whisperinghoperanch.org.

Source: Forensics Key in Solving Mansion Mystery | NBC San Diego

[MuffyBee]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/07/team-of-15-detectives-probing-womans-death-at-coronado-mansion.html
Fifteen detectives probe woman's death at Coronado mansion
July 20, 2011

A team of 15 detectives is investigating the death of a woman at the Spreckels Mansion in Coronado but determining the cause could take weeks, sheriff's officials said Wednesday.

Detectives from the San Diego County Sheriff's, Coronado Police and the California Justice departments are investigating the circumstances around the death of Rebecca Nalepa, 32, the girlfriend of mansion owner Jonah Shacknai, a pharmaceutical industry executive.

Nalepa -- also known by her maiden name, Rebecca Zahau -- was found in the courtyard of the mansion on July 13. The Sheriff's Department has said it cannot yet conclude whether her death was suicide or a "criminal event."
 ::snipping2::

The homicide unit is waiting on results from forensic evidence and toxicology tests. A search warrant was served on the mansion but investigators declined to say what was found.
 ::snipping2::
Separately, the Coronado Police Department is investigating the death of 6-year-old Max Shacknai, the son of the owner. The boy fell down the stairs at the mansion on July 11 and was rushed to Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, where he died July 17.

The Coronado police have tentatively labeled the boy's death accidental. Investigators have said they have found no connection between the two deaths.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/07/jonah-shacknai-hires-pr-firm-as-police-probe-death-of-rebecca-na/
Jonah Shacknai Hires PR Firm as Police Probe Death of Rebecca Nalepa
July 21, 2011

While two deaths at his Coronado, Ca., mansion are still under investigation, Jonah Shacknai has hired a high-profile public relations agency, reports say.

Shacknai hired Sitrick and Company, a powerful PR firm out of L.A.

His six-year-old son Max suffered a fatal fall down the stairs last week, just two days before Jonah's girlfriend Rebecca Nalepa was found dead.

Coronado police have ruled the boy's death a tragic accident. The death of Rebecca Nalepa, also known as Rebecca Zahau, is a bigger mystery.
 ::snipping2::
An executive at Shacknai's company, Sitrick, said the pharmaceutical CEO hired them to help him as he grieves and takes care of two funerals.
(Video at link)

[MuffyBee]

http://tinyurl.com/3nubbvc
Sister of Woman Found Dead Inside CEO's California Mansion Claims It Was Not Suicide
July 21, 2011
FoxNews.com

 
 ::snipping2::
Police are probing the death of Rebecca Zahau, who was found July 13 hanging by her neck -- naked with her hands and feet bound -- from a balcony inside the Coronado mansion of Jonah Shacknai, chairman and chief executive of the Medicis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
 ::snipping2::
Mary Zahau-Loehner, the woman's sister, said in statement to KFMB-TV in San Diego that she does not believe her sister took her own life.

"Obviously, the investigation is not complete yet, but as far as what I know about my sister, my sister did not commit a suicide," Zahau-Loehner reportedly said in the statement. "My sister was not depressed, my sister was not frantic, my sister was planning to call my parents the next day and was planning to keep me posted about Max the next day."

Police have called Zahau's death "bizarre," and say they're investigating whether it was a suicide or a homicide. They're also working to establish a connection between her death and Shacknai's 6-year-old son.

The San Diego Sheriff's Department said Tuesday that it is looking into the "possibility other people may have been staying inside the house" the night before Zahau died.

The department also said autopsy records, as well as a search-warrant affidavit, will remain sealed during the course of the death investigation.
 ::snipping2::
Shacknai's brother, Adam, who was staying in the mansion guesthouse at the time, found Zahau's body in the early morning on July 13 and called 911. He reportedly cut the rope in an attempt to save her. His brother, Jonah, was not at home, according to reports.
Zahau and a 13-year-old girl, whose name has not been released, were with Max Shacknai when he fell down the stairs two days earlier in what authorities have called a "tragic accident," according to Fox5SanDeigo.com.

The child was not breathing and did not have a pulse when paramedics found him and took him to Rady Children's Hospital, where he died six days later.
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[Nut44x4]

I have been following this. Too strange.....

[cookie]

very strange indeed

[MOMDET]

Anyone heard anything?

[cookie]

not a word Monken...not a word..very strange

[MuffyBee]

http://www.10news.com/news/28689113/detail.html
Forensic Expert Discusses Coronado Death Investigation
Dr. Werner Spitz Served As Expert Witness In OJ Simpson, Phil Spector, Casey Anthony Trials
July 27, 2011

[MuffyBee]

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/national/report%3A-autopsies-completed-but-without-answers-in-%27mansion-mystery%27-deaths
Report: Autopsies completed but without answers in 'mansion mystery' deaths
July 27, 2011

Video at Link

[cookie]

thanks Muffy...