New York City woman Sarai Sierra disappeared in Turkey,01/21/12(BODY FOUND)

[cw618]

so so sad
 


video
Body of missing U.S. woman found in Istanbul, reports say

The body of an unidentified woman was discovered near the city walls in the Sarayburnu district in Istanbul earlier today. Authorities are considering the option that the woman might be American Sarai Sierra.
 http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/Default.aspx?pageID=428&VideoID=472

[MuffyBee]

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57567300/turkish-media-missing-new-york-woman-sarai-sierra-found-dead/
Turkish media: Missing New York woman Sarai Sierra found dead
February 2, 2013

ANKARA, TURKEY A New York City woman who went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul was found dead on Saturday, and police were questioning 11 people in connection with the case, Turkey's state-run news agency said.

Sarai Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, was last heard from on Jan. 21, the day she was to fly home. Her disappearance attracted a lot of interest in Turkey, where the disappearance of tourists is rare, and Istanbul police had set up a special unit to find her.

The state-run Anadolu Agency said the body of a woman was discovered Saturday evening near the remnants of ancient city walls and that police later identified it as Sierra's.

The agency said she was found with a head wound and a blanket near her body. She was wearing jeans, a jumper and a jacket, and still had her earrings and a bracelet.
 ::snipping2::
The body was found not far from the bridge and near a major road that runs alongside the sea of Marmara. Here tourists often photograph dozens of tankers waiting to access the Bosporus strait.

On Saturday, police stopped traffic there as forensic police inspected the area.

Anadolu suggested Sierra may have been killed at another location and that her body may have been brought to the site to be hidden there.

At least 11 people were being questioned in Istanbul, Anadolu said, and a police official at the site told journalists that two of them were women. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters about the case. Earlier, Anadolu had said nine people were detained.

It was not clear if a Turkish man Sierra had exchanged emails with during her stay in Istanbul was among those being questioned. He was detained for questioning Friday, then released. Turkish news reports said Sierra had arranged to meet the man on Galata Bridge, but he reportedly told police the meeting never took place.

Shortly after her body was discovered, a woman came forward and told police she had seen a white car parked near the city walls as she was driving there the night of Jan. 29, Anadolu reported. She said a man was trying to remove "something" from the car.

"At that moment, I noticed a woman's hand," Anadolu quoted the woman as telling reporters after talking with police. The agency said she declined to give her name.
 ::snipping2::
Shortly after Sierra was reported missing, Turkey set up a special police unit which scanned hours of security camera footage in downtown Istanbul in search of clues. A Turkish missing persons association joined the search, handing out flyers with photos of Sierra and urging anyone with information to call police.
 ::snipping2::

Video at Link

[MuffyBee]

http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2013/02/report_body_of_staten_island_w.html
Body of Staten Island woman Sarai Sierra found in Turkey, report says
February 2, 2013


Police officers search for missing Staten Island woman Sarai Sierra near the remnants of ancient city walls in low-income district of Sarayburnu in Istanbul, Turkey, late Saturday, AP photo

[cw618]

hmmmm,i know media botches facts here,guessing they do in turkey too

previously reported

2/2/13
The woman was found on Saturday in the Sarayburnu neighborhood in İstanbul and she was reportedly found out to have been stabbed to death.
http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=305925

Missing Latina Mother Sarai Sierra Killed by Blow to the Head in Turkey
Published February 03, 2013
Fox News Latino

Ankara, Turkey –  Turkish police say a New York City woman who went missing and was later found dead in Istanbul had suffered a fatal blow to the head.
Istanbul police chief Huseyin Capkin said Sunday that forensic experts had not concluded their autopsy report on the victim, Sarai Sierra, but that it was "clear" the head injury caused her death.
NTV, a Turkish broadcaster, says 15 people have been detained for questioning in the case.
more
http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2013/02/03/missing-latina-mother-killed-by-blow-to-the-head-in-turkey/

[Toler]

Spouse IDs missing Staten Island woman as case of her Istanbul killing takes bizarre turn

Sarai Sierra was murdered in Turkey, where she sojourned to pursue an interest in photography though she did not bring a camera. Her flight itinerary also showed she made quick trips from Turkey to Amsterdam and Munich then back to Istanbul, where she was found dead in a seedy neighborhood.
2/4/13


Family and friends of Sarai Sierra, who was murdered in Turkey, are mourning at her Staten Island home as her husband and brother wait in Istanbul to reclaim her body.
 
Sierra’s remains were identified Sunday by her husband Steven Sierra, 40, police chief Huseyin Capkin said. And Sarai’s husband and her brother, David Jimenez, won’t leave Istanbul without her, a family spokeswoman said.
 
Sierra, 33, a mother of two who went missing Jan. 21 on a solo trip to Istanbul, was killed by a single blow to the head, Turkish officials said. Her body was discovered Saturday in a rundown section of the city less than a mile from the storied Topkapi Palace.


Sierra was last heard from Jan. 20, the day before she was expected to catch a flight home. She planned the trip with a friend who canceled at the last minute.
 
She said she was going to Istanbul to pursue her love of photography, yet she traveled without a camera. And her travel itinerary continues to draw scrutiny.
 
Sierra arrived in Turkey on Jan. 7, but then flew to Amsterdam and Munich a week later before returning to Turkey on Jan. 19, authorities said.


Police are trying to retrace her steps and find out where she stayed on those jaunts and what motivated them. Turkish newspapers reported Sierra had contact in Amsterdam with someone she met online and may have stayed with him or her.
 
In Istanbul, Sierra stayed in the basement apartment of a Turkish man named Yigit Yetmez, who said he last saw her on Jan. 20, according to the Dogan news agency. Yetmez also lived at the apartment.


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/missing-woman-turkey-id-case-stakes-bizarre-turn-article-1.1254626#ixzz2JxM5yEBC

[cw618]

 ::snipping2::

Sarai Sierra was murdered in Turkey, where she sojourned to pursue an interest in photography though she did not bring a camera
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/missing-woman-turkey-id-case-stakes-bizarre-turn-article-1.1254626#ixzz2JxM5yEBC

so she took these with her phone camera?
http://instagram.com/memyself_sarai/

[MuffyBee]

http://abcnews.go.com/International/sarai-sierras-young-sons-mom-coming-home/story?id=18401304
Sarai Sierra's Young Sons Don't Know Mom Isn't Coming Home
February 4, 2013

(2 pg article)
The two young sons of slain New York mom Sarai Sierra are under the impression that their father has gone to Turkey to bring their mother home - alive.

Sierra, whose battered body was found near a highway in Istanbul over the weekend, was the mother of two boys aged 9 and 11.

Steven Sierra, who went to Istanbul in search of his wife after she disappeared nearly two weeks ago, told his children that he was going to Turkey to bring their mom home.

"The father will be speaking to them and it's something that's going to be hard and he's going to be talking to them when he comes back," Betsy Jimenez, the mother of Sarai Sierra, said today during a family news conference.

State Representative Michael Grimm said Steven Sierra's biggest concern is telling his children that mom's not coming home.

"It's going to be the hardest thing he's ever going to have to do in his life," said Grimm, who added that the Staten Island family isn't sure when Steven Sierra will be able to bring home his wife's body.
More...

Video at Link

[MuffyBee]

http://abcnews.go.com/International/sarai-sierras-family-selling-photos-pay-funeral/story?id=18410697
Sarai Sierra's Family Selling Her Photos to Help Pay For Funeral
February 5, 2013

The family of an American woman murdered while on a photography trip in Turkey is selling her photos to help pay for funeral costs.

Sarai Sierra, 33, was found bludgeoned to death near a highway in Istanbul on Saturday. Her iPhone and iPad, the tools she used to share her photos with her thousands of Instagram followers were reportedly missing.

The Staten Island mother of two traveled to Turkey alone on Jan. 7 after a friend had to cancel. It was Sierra's first overseas trip, and she kept in contact with her family the entire time, they said, sharing stories of her journey and posting photos online.

"Sarai's passion for photography and love for capturing the beauty we see in culture, architecture and scenery was her reason for traveling to Istanbul," her brother, David Jimenez, wrote on a website set up to sell his sister's phtoography.

Among the photos for sell are Istanbul sunsets, and shots of Sierra's beloved New York City.

More...
Video at Link

[Toler]

Turkey ma’s shady pals
Hung with bad guys: feds2/6/13

FBI agents probing the murder of a Staten Island mom in Turkey said they don’t believe she was there just to take pictures — and said she hung out with a “criminal element” during the solo trip abroad.

“There are a lot of open questions that need to be answered,” a source familiar with the ongoing case told The Post.

Mother of two Sarai Sierra, 33, was found dead from a ferocious blow to the skull in a seedy area of Istanbul last Saturday after failing to show up for a Jan. 21 flight home to New York.

“The first people she met up with were a criminal element,” the source said of Sierra, who flew to Turkey Jan. 7, then to Amsterdam on Jan. 15 and Munich on Jan. 16 before heading back to Istanbul Jan. 19.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     The FBI is in Turkey investigating the case, and is looking into a possible connection to drug trafficking — among other lines of inquiry, a source said.

“There are some witness reports that she was seen with sketchy characters,” said the source, adding that agents are following up those leads to determine if they’re accurate.

Sierra’s friends and family said the young mom — an amateur photographer who shot her pictures with an iPad and Droid phone — went abroad to take pictures.

During her trip, Sierra planned to connect with friends she’d met online. But the feds aren’t convinced they’re getting the full story of why she was overseas, a source said.

Sierra’s relatives — including husband Steven and brother David Jimenez, who flew to Istanbul last week — are being “cooperative,” sources close to the probe said.

But “being cooperative and being helpful are two different things,” said one source.

Sierra’s family has said she went alone on her first trip abroad after a friend bailed out at the last minute.

Sierra’s family has said she went alone on her first trip abroad after a friend bailed out at the last minute.

The friend, Maggie Rodriguez, told The Post that Sierra began planning the trip “a few months ago” and that she alerted Sierra early on that she couldn’t afford to go with her.

But the previously unemployed Sierra, who declared bankruptcy in 2005, forged ahead.   ::snipping2:: 

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/staten_island/turkey_ma_shady_pals_fufaVJvDX6chDrmhlmYZyL

[Toler]

Man held in Turkey claims he had affair with murdered New York woman
2/6/13

A man being questioned by Turkish authorities in the murder of a New York tourist found beaten to death in Istanbul has reportedly told authorities there he had a sexual relationship with the woman.
 
The Turkish man, identified only as "Taylan," gave DNA and sperm samples to police investigating the death of 33-year-old Sarai Sierra, a mother of two found beaten beyond recognition near ancient walls in Istanbul, the Turkish daily Vatan reported Wednesday. The man told investigators he had a consensual sexual relationship with Sierra before she was last seen on Jan. 21, according to the newspaper. 
 
But Sierra's best friend, Magdalena Rodriguez, told FoxNews.com she doesn't believe the man's claim.   
 
"We know Sarai. We know she didn't run off with anybody," said Rodriguez, who originally planned to accompany Sierra on her solo vacation to Istanbul.
 
"She would have told me. She would have said something," said Rodriguez, who claims she was in constant contact with Sierra during the trip.
 
"I don't believe what he [Taylan] says for one second," she said, adding, "Sarai wouldn't willingly and knowingly involve herself with people who did not have her best interest at heart."
 
Sierra, a freelance photographer from Staten Island, N.Y., traveled to Istanbul Jan. 7 and failed to return on a flight Jan. 21.
 
Turkish authorities say Sierra died from a single blow to the head. A local funeral company on Tuesday told the Hürriyet Daily News, an English-language newspaper in Turkey, that she had multiple injuries to her head and face.Her body was found Saturday near remnants of the city's ancient walls. Turkish police said there appeared to be no sign of a sexual assault, though the New York Daily News reported the woman was found in only a shirt and underwear. Sierra's gold jewelry was still on her, but her tablet computer and U.S. cellphone are missing.
 
A source familiar with the investigation told FoxNews.com that Sierra had contacted "amateur tour guides" online in advance of her trip. Taylan was among the individuals whom she had communicated with, and the two were known to have met on Jan. 13, according to multiple Turkish media accounts. The pair had planned to meet by the Galata Tower on Jan. 21 -- the day she was last seen -- but Taylan reportedly told investigators that Sierra never showed up.  ::snipping2:: 


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/02/06/many-held-in-turkey-claims-had-affair-with-murdered-new-york-woman/?cmpid=prn_aol#ixzz2K9Ocfdeg

[Toler]

Internet pal of slain Sarai Sierra claims he slept with Staten Island mom
By JEANE MacINTOSH
Last Updated: 2:54 PM, February 6, 2013
Posted: 2:49 PM, February 6, 2013

 
An Istanbul Internet pal of Sarai Sierra claims he had a tryst with the murdered Staten Island mother of two in Turkey, according to published reports.

“Taylan K” – who has been interviewed at length by Istanbul police in the disappearance and killing of Sarai Sierra, 33 – admitted he had consensual sex with the married photographer the day before she went missing, Turkey’s daily Vatan reported today.

He is one of 22 people that Turkish police have taken sperm and/or blood samples from as they hunt Sierra’s killer.

Sierra was found dead of a single blow to the head in a seedy area of Istanbul Feb. 2, weeks after she failed to show up for a Jan. 21 flight home to New YorkTaylan has previously told police he and Sierra first met in person Jan. 13 but initially insisted they were just friends. The pair met online several months ago, when he commented on a photograph Sierra posted on Instagram, authorities have said.

Taylan has denied any role in her disappearance or murder.

Police said Taylan sent Sierra a message the day she vanished, asking her to meet at an Istanbul tourist area. Taylan has said the meeting never happened because Sarai never responded.   ::snipping2:: 

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/staten_island/internet_pal_staten_slain_sarai_3mRYTO2hTwpX247xgBb3MJ

[cw618]

Body of Sarai Sierra makes long journey home from Turkey

Comments (46)
By Rich Schapiro In Istanbul / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Wednesday, February 6, 2013, 9:15 AM
Updated: Wednesday, February 6, 2013, 3:15 PM


Pearl Gabel/Pearl Gabel/ New York Daily News
The casket of slain Staten Island mom Sarai Sierra is walked through the streets of Galata Saray.
 ::snipping2::
The body of the Staten Island woman bludgeoned to death in Istanbul was being prepared Wednesday for its journey home.
Sarai Sierra's remains will be flown out of Turkey on Thursday, according to the funeral home handling her case
Read more,and imgs
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/sarai-sierra-body-journey-home-turkey-article-1.1256570

[cw618]

Sarai Sierra's Photos Become Big Sellers As Family Puts Them Online

By ALYSSA NEWCOMB (@alyssanewcomb) and NICK SCHIFRIN (@nickschifrin)
Feb. 5, 2013

 ::snipping2::
The family of Sarai Sierra, an amateur New York photographer slain while on a trip to Turkey, put her photos up for sale today and quickly sold enough photographs to pay forher funeral, the woman's brother said today.
 
The photos remain on sale and the profits will now be going to her two young sons, the family said.
 
Sierra, 33, was found bludgeoned to death near a highway in Istanbul on Saturday. Her iPhone and iPad, the tools she used to share her photos with her thousands of Instagram followers were reportedly missing
more and back to back vids
http://abcnews.go.com/International/sarai-sierras-photos-big-sellers-family-puts-online/story?id=18410697

[cw618]

website set up to sell his sister's photography.


@memyself_sarai's Gallery

"Hey Instacanvas, Thank you for all the support in purchasing Sarai's pictures. Quick update, all expenses for Sarai's funeral have been paid for! From here on out any picture of hers that you purchase will NOT be going towards her funeral. All funds will be going to her children. Thank you for your support. David"
http://instacanv.as/memyself_sarai

[MuffyBee]

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/02/09/turkish-police-reportedly-fail-to-find-dna-match-in-murder-new-york-mom/
Turkish police reportedly fail to find DNA match in murder of New York mom
February 9, 2013

The investigation into what happened to a Staten Island woman murdered in Turkey took another twist, as Turkish media reported that none of the DNA taken from 22 suspects matches the DNA found near her body.

A Turkish newspaper also reported that the family of 33-year-old Sarai Sierra knew she was cheating on her husband, the New York Post reported.

Turkish newspaper Per Vatan revealed that Sierra's brother allegedly sent the mother of two a Facebook message saying, "If you are going to cheat on him, why don't you just get out of his life," the Post reported.

The message was allegedly sent before she went missing. She was found beaten to death in a seedy area of Istanbul.
More...

[Sister]

this is very sad.
 

[MuffyBee]

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2013/02/15/sarai-sierra-buried-police-detain-siblings-suspect-in-her-death/?intcmp=obinsite
Sarai Sierra Buried, Police Detain Siblings of Suspect in Her Death
February 15, 2013

 ::snipping2::
About 200 mourners attended Sarai Sierra’s funeral at Christian Pentecostal Church on Staten Island Friday morning. Following the service, Sierra, 33, was buried in a cemetery just steps away from the apartment building where she lived with her husband and children.
 ::snipping2::
The same day she was buried, Turkish investigators announced they had detained the siblings of a man wanted for questioning over her death.

Turkey's state-run agency said police briefly took the two brothers and a sister of the possible suspect into custody in the northern city of Karabuk. They were released after being questioned about their brother's whereabouts. The Anadolu agency says their DNA samples were taken.

Police in Karabuk refused to comment. Turkish news reports say police want to question a scrap paper collector who used to hang around Istanbul's ancient city walls, where Sierra's body was found on Feb. 2, 12 days after disappeared. Authorities say she sustained a fatal blow to the head.
 ::snipping2::

[texasmom]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/17/ziya-t-man-suspected-of-killing-nyc-mother-sarai-sierra_n_2895547.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl1%7Csec3_lnk1%26pLid%3D284894

Ziya T, Man Suspected Of Killing NYC Mother Sarai Sierra, Arrested In Turkey
03/17/13 09:22 AM ET EDT   

ANKARA, Turkey -- Turkish police on Sunday detained a man wanted for the killing of a New York City woman in Istanbul, an official said.

The suspect, identified by authorities only as Ziya T, had been on the run since the body of Sarai Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two boys, was discovered last month.

Authorities said Sierra died of a fatal blow to the head. She had traveled to Turkey to explore her photography hobby. She went alone after a friend who was supposed to join her canceled for financial reasons. Her body was found hidden near the city walls on Feb. 12, days after her family reported her missing.

The suspect was detained in Hatay province, near Turkey's border with Syria, Gov. Celalettin Lekesiz said. He gave no further detail about the arrest or the man's identity.

Turkish news reports have described the man as a homeless scrap paper collector who used to hang around Istanbul's ancient city walls.

The man was expected to be taken to Istanbul for questioning and to face possible formal arrest and charges.

Reports said police identified Ziya T. as the main suspect in the case after DNA samples taken from his two brothers and a sister matched those found beneath Sierra's nails. Police would not confirm these reports, saying the investigation is ongoing.

 

[texasmom]

http://www.cnnturk.com/2013/guncel/03/17/sarai.sierranin.katil.zanlisi.yakalandi/700549.0/index.html

Google translation:

17/03/2013 17:56:37 - Updated 3 sec. ago.

Sarai Sierra murder suspect arrested
   
Sarai American mother of 2 children murdered in Istanbul 5.1 months for alleged murder suspect sought after Sierra paper collector 'Laz Ziya' dubbed 46-year-old Zia Tansel, Cilvegözü Border Gate was arrested. İstanbul, Karaikal and Hatay following the escape of many security cameras Zia set points Tanseli'nin Syria to escape understood that the Turkish authorities had initiatives in this country before. This initiative resulted in traces, and Zia, and was caught Talseli. Hatay Governor made ​​a written statement on the arrest of murder suspect Zia Tanseli'nin. Governor's statement, " the U.S. citizen murder suspect wanted in Sierra Sarai, and the public 'Laz Ziya' ZT today known as Reyhanli province were arrested by security forces in the district of queues at 12.00. Individuals were handed over to the judicial authorities after the first interrogation "the statement said. Hatay Police Department received expression Zia Tansel, Antakya State Hospital for a checkup to be taken to put an armored vehicle. Draws attention to the military camo pants on Tanseli'nin, extensive security measures were taken during the referral hospital. sent to Istanbul , Ziya Tansel, transactions and then removed from the Police Department. Tansel through the air over Adana to Istanbul reportedly be taken. enter Turkey caught Meanwhile, Interior Minister Muammer Guler, the United States 'with the investigation into the death of Sarai on Sierra, "had come to inform us about the person fled abroad. Probably Syria 'is also known. Today in Hatay, Turkey, was handed over to judicial authorities detained and when logging in, "he said. Guler, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan 's Biga İÇDAŞ Facility came to participate in the program, told reporters in Istanbul public opinion about the death of an American woman in a wide acclaimed by the incident took place, he said. police near Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, where attentiveness that doing research with great care, "Thousands of photos, research, certain tests were made ​​in the image. A person determined that this murder was carried out. these hails, izlemelerimiz continued. inform us about the person had fled abroad. Probably Syria 'is also known. Yesterday when logging in Hatay, Turkey, was taken into custody and delivered to the judicial authorities, "he said.

[texasmom]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2294751/Sarai-Sierra-murder-Homeless-man-detained-police-murder.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Homeless man accused of bludgeoning New York mother to death with a brick in Istanbul caught after weeks on the run

Sarai Sierra, 33, was killed by a fatal blow to the head during trip to Istanbul
The mother-of-two's body was found on February 2 - she had not spoken to her husband since January 14
Homeless suspect 'Ziya T' had dirt all over him and 'fingernail scratches' on day she died
Brick found with Sarai's blood on it has been called the murder weapon

By THOMAS DURANTE
PUBLISHED: 07:47 EST, 17 March 2013 | UPDATED: 10:04 EST, 17 March 2013

The homeless man accused of killing a New York mother to death in Turkey back in January has been detained by police - weeks after he fled to avoid authorities.

'Ziya T,' a trash collector in Istanbul, had been the prime suspect in the murder of Sarai Sierra, 33, a mother of two from Staten Island - who was found dead on February 2.

Gov Celalettin Lekesiz told the Associated Press on Sunday that police nabbed the suspect in Hatay province, near Turkey's border with Syria.

 ::snipping2::



 ::snipping2::

Turkish police said that after studying footage from more than 500 cameras in the area, they were able to track Ziya in 16 different locations on January 24, the same day Sarai Sierra was murdered.

They said he is pictured carrying the mother-of-two's brown leather jacket to a second-hand bazaar and selling it before fleeing Istanbul.

 ::snipping2::

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2294751/Sarai-Sierra-murder-Homeless-man-detained-police-murder.html#ixzz2NoWAK1Y5
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