GUILTY Turkey - Sarai Sierra, 33, NY woman murdered, Istanbul, 21 Jan 2013 - #4

[Rolandred]

Welcome, pbj, nice post. :dance: I found myself reacting aloud to: 4. but does a professional kill someone with a rock?

EXACTLY?

If you mean a professional killer - I would think they could kill with anything, including bare hands - I am not sure what LE meant by "professional". Con-artist, garbage man, business man...?

 

[ThinkHard]

Her flight left about 11am on Jan 22.

She had all of Jan 21 day and night in Istanbul before leaving for the airport the next day.

That's a guess right? Aren't you just basing that time on looking at flights that arrived around 455 on the 22?

I think the date she was leaving has never truly been 100% confirmed, as I have seen it written in various sources that her day of departure was on the 21st.

Because she changed her ticket it is entirely possible that the two legs of her trip were booked separately by the agent assisting her to minimize the cost, agents are sometimes willing to help you out by being creative with travel at times like that. And it is possible she was leaving Istanbul late on the 21st to a European city (had a layover) and was then flying to Newark from this layover city arriving in Newark on the 22 at 455pm.

The reason I think this is possible, is because her family said her flight was getting in at 455pm, but there were no united flights with Istanbul as their origin arriving in Newark at 455, the closest was 435pm. And yes that is close...but it's also possible the legs were booked separate and she was flying into Newark from a different European city in which Istanbul was not listed on her second leg as the original departure city.

Just some thoughts.

 

[Lostinabook]

On Morality, Culture and Web Hookups...

I wish we knew more about Sarai's state of mind and motivation(s) for this trip. It seems to me that the people who were supposed to be closest to her speak about her yet don't say anything. If most families are keen on protecting their dead's reputations, a pentecostal, Puerto Rican family will protect a woman as good as Sarai is said to have been fiercely. Yet I don't know that the world would agree with her family and church friends on what could be said that would tarnish Sarai's image. I think nothing. But we all have our own views on morality.

This quote is what I was referring to earlier when I responded to one of Cmac2's posts related to how much Sarai knew about her destination(s). I'm also posting some more of what the friend said, which is what finally got me writing this.


MAGALENA RODRIGUEZ, SARAI SIERRA'S FRIEND: "She did a lot of homework before she left. She did a lot of research about the area, about where she was going to stay, the safest places to go, and the time and days to travel."

(I wonder what she bases this declaration on, considering some of her other statements.)

Other of friend's quotes from Daily Mail :

'I don't know what to believe when it comes to the people she came into contact with. From recent reports and typical chatter, it seems she and her husband were going through their own rocky period. It happens. Is it hard to believe she may have been at a point in her life she was moving on or looking for adventure? No, I can't say that. Can I say any of that with certainty? No.'

(If she was her life-long, close friend she would notice any changes in Sarai's demeanor, attitude, life pov, new physical address? Ok, she probably wouldn't like to confirm that out of respect for the husband. But we know typical chatter means gossip and the marriage was on the rocks -- no other reason to bring up phrases like "moving on or looking for adventure.")

According to the Daily Mail, Magdalena Rodríguez (they print that she refuses to be identified but it can be confirmed it's the same, only "life-long" friend) "expressed shock at the risky behavior of her life-long friend and that she would stay with Ammer Reduron in Amsterdam despite meeting him online just a few months ago:"

'It doesn't really speak to how we were raised, she said. 'But, like I said before, we grow, we change, we evolve. I would never imagine her being so trusting.

(What does she really know, without having to imagine, about her life-long friend Sarai? Maybe they'd grown apart in the last few years due to family obligations and interests, but everyone else describes her as a risk-taker, adventurous, with a thirst for life and "fearless." But hose might not be ladylike, wifely, god-fearing qualities.)

More from close friend Magdalena Rodríguez:

'It does surprise me as a woman because my personal feeling is you should always be weary and on your guard. Not just in another country, but always.
'There are people I've known for years online...I would never imagine meeting with any one of them alone.
'Also, trusting an area you barely know? People you don't know? Not scrapping one of the "side trips" to upgrade your lodgings to a safer neighborhood...Like I said, WAY too many to name.'

(Thank heavens for good friends!)

Moving on, she believes Sarai might have been naive:

'I don't think you can get enough information on the climate or culture from a few online searches, if anything, you're going to get the rosy-colored pictures painted,' she said.
'From what I've read and seen [of Istanbul], the climate there for women is pretty unstable. And as someone who always looks to understand and educate themselves, there are areas where it behooves you to understand the bias' that are felt towards a woman's presentation...the way they dress, the way they look, if you can see their hair, if there is skin exposed, are you walking alone.'


(Sadly, it appears they've found no one who can knowingly speak to Sarai's true state of mind, intentions, feelings, plans with a greater degree of authenticity and compassion. I know the culture of the kind of church Sarai attended, and perhaps being separated from her husband (and maybe considering divorce), making friends on social networks, walking around the city taking pics instead of taking to reading the bible more, and (gasp) making a trip on her own would not be looked upon kindly by the sisters and brothers of the church. I would not be surprised if the underlying tone and feel among them is that she got what she deserved, "from God", for her sins. And don't get me wrong. This is not to say that they didn't love or care about her. Just that I haven't met any pentecostals who aren't fundamentalists, and the way she seemed to be living her life would not sit well with the pentecostal church. There is a man interviewed on video, perhaps a friend of the family, who says something to the effect that what happened is it's "no one's fault", but just a husband who let his wife go on a trip to follow her dream. I sense finger-pointing is definitely on full blast, but of course this doesn't only happen in church. And church has evolved in some places.

My point being, I doubt we'll ever get the full story of what was going on in Sarai's life (besides her newfound love of photography) that could have propelled her towards this travel adventure where she met her insanely unfair demise --until maybe a few years from now, when someone decides they could make money from a tell-all. Heart-breaking.


Please excuse the sarcasm, and hopefully I haven't offended anyone with my thoughts. I sure haven't intended to. I can only write from my perspective of some of what I am: Puerto Rican, woman, mother, friend, and exposed for many years to pentecostal mindset; all these together can turn flammable when speaking of perceived injustice. I do not doubt for a second that anything Sarai's family and friends say or do regarding her is meant to uphold and honor Sarai's memory and most importantly, to protect her children.

 

[Herat]

her choice of accommodation is what it is and that is it.
Probably was close to IG friends. She didn't expect to be spending much time in the place. Who cares about plush when you are on an adventure. Still better than a hostel.

There are lots of hostels that aren't party places, do have travelers of varied ages, and have private rooms, not just dorm beds. Those private rooms might be twice the price of a standard dorm bed.

The airBnB reviews I read of places similar to hers mention stays of 1-3 nights. She initially had booked it for 17 nights, an unusually long stay for such a place, and appears to have received a discount for the unusually long booking.

 

[ThinkHard]

i see. didnt realize she disappered the day before she was supposed to leave. all this time, somehow i thought it was the day of her planned departure. i wonder what her family made of not hearing from her that night since she supposedly called every night with a report of her days activities. its all water under the bridge now, but seems like that should have been the first red flag.

I agree with this train of thought too. It's one of the reasons I always believed her departure date from Istanbul was the 21st. Because her family spoke to her so frequently, I would have thought they would have commented that they were worried they hadn't heard from her the entire day of the 21st (with the exception of the early morning text to her sister), if her flight wasnt leaving until the 22nd. And why would she call her father on the 20th to remind him of her arrival times, when she could have done that the evening of the 21st.

The only logical conclusion that made sense to me, was that her family knew she was flying out of Istanbul on the 21st, and assumed she was busy traveling and couldn't contact them. If she had that entire last day of the 21st in Istanbul I would have thought her family would have mentioned it was weird not to hear from her that whole day.

But they didn't seem to be concerned until she didn't arrive back in NY at 455 on the 22nd.

 

[stmarysmead]

The general area she stayed in is reported as being full of students, with restaurants, groceries, bars would not be considered unsafe if you were to mention it to friends in istanbul. It is not run down, and has plenty of public transit accesss.

However, the particular street the rental was on was not very good, with some unsavory charcters, mostly illegal immigrants. You wouldn't be able to figure that out from the apartment ad. It is just advertised as the "Cheapest" on airBnB. The photos make it seem neat and tidy. But it's not plush by any means. A very small basement room with tiny bathroom, no direct sunlight. Other comparable airBnB places in the area were similar in size/appearance but about $5-10 more a night.

SS was chatting with her Internet Turkish friends for 4 months. She did not have to depend on Internet photos and descriptions. I find it odd that neither Taylan ..who had a very negative opinion of the area... nor any of these other friends...did not advise her to find lodgings elsewhere. Likewise, did she have alternative ideas for where to stay in Amersterdam if that "friend" let her down or had the "wrong idea." On one hand, some like to say SS did all this research...well, why not start with your friends WHO LIVE THERE.

It is these small things that do not add up. Sometimes she is supposedly pinching pennies, asking her husband for money tocome home sooner. Wasn't there several hundred dollars on the LAST day in her room? Her flight change would already have had to be made and paid for...if she was confirmed for the next day. That is a lot of money for someone on a shoestring trip to still have left.

I think many fantasies have been built around this "adventure" and many excuses and cover stories told. That is why there are so many contradictions between the "street smart" NYC photographer/artist traveling abroad....and the things SS did and did not do.

In the end, if it is just a random killing by this homeless man, I hope we receive no more information. Let it be. For the sake of the family and those little boys.

 

[KuriousKev]

On Morality, Culture and Web Hookups...

I wish we knew more about Sarai's state of mind and motivation(s) for this trip. It seems to me that the people who were supposed to be closest to her speak about her yet don't say anything. If most families are keen on protecting their dead's reputations, a pentecostal, Puerto Rican family will protect a woman as good as Sarai is said to have been fiercely. Yet I don't know that the world would agree with her family and church friends on what could be said that would tarnish Sarai's image. I think nothing. But we all have our own views on morality.

This quote is what I was referring to earlier when I responded to one of Cmac2's posts related to how much Sarai knew about her destination(s). I'm also posting some more of what the friend said, which is what finally got me writing this.


MAGALENA RODRIGUEZ, SARAI SIERRA'S FRIEND: "She did a lot of homework before she left. She did a lot of research about the area, about where she was going to stay, the safest places to go, and the time and days to travel."

(I wonder what she bases this declaration on, considering some of her other statements.)

Other of friend's quotes from Daily Mail :

'I don't know what to believe when it comes to the people she came into contact with. From recent reports and typical chatter, it seems she and her husband were going through their own rocky period. It happens. Is it hard to believe she may have been at a point in her life she was moving on or looking for adventure? No, I can't say that. Can I say any of that with certainty? No.'

(If she was her life-long, close friend she would notice any changes in Sarai's demeanor, attitude, life pov, new physical address? Ok, she probably wouldn't like to confirm that out of respect for the husband. But we know typical chatter means gossip and the marriage was on the rocks -- no other reason to bring up phrases like "moving on or looking for adventure.")

According to the Daily Mail, Magdalena Rodríguez (they print that she refuses to be identified but it can be confirmed it's the same, only "life-long" friend) "expressed shock at the risky behavior of her life-long friend and that she would stay with Ammer Reduron in Amsterdam despite meeting him online just a few months ago:"

'It doesn't really speak to how we were raised, she said. 'But, like I said before, we grow, we change, we evolve. I would never imagine her being so trusting.

(What does she really know, without having to imagine, about her life-long friend Sarai? Maybe they'd grown apart in the last few years due to family obligations and interests, but everyone else describes her as a risk-taker, adventurous, with a thirst for life and "fearless." But hose might not be ladylike, wifely, god-fearing qualities.)

More from close friend Magdalena Rodríguez:

'It does surprise me as a woman because my personal feeling is you should always be weary and on your guard. Not just in another country, but always.
'There are people I've known for years online...I would never imagine meeting with any one of them alone.
'Also, trusting an area you barely know? People you don't know? Not scrapping one of the "side trips" to upgrade your lodgings to a safer neighborhood...Like I said, WAY too many to name.'

(Thank heavens for good friends!)

Moving on, she believes Sarai might have been naive:

'I don't think you can get enough information on the climate or culture from a few online searches, if anything, you're going to get the rosy-colored pictures painted,' she said.
'From what I've read and seen [of Istanbul], the climate there for women is pretty unstable. And as someone who always looks to understand and educate themselves, there are areas where it behooves you to understand the bias' that are felt towards a woman's presentation...the way they dress, the way they look, if you can see their hair, if there is skin exposed, are you walking alone.'


(Sadly, it appears they've found no one who can knowingly speak to Sarai's true state of mind, intentions, feelings, plans with a greater degree of authenticity and compassion. I know the culture of the kind of church Sarai attended, and perhaps being separated from her husband (and maybe considering divorce), making friends on social networks, walking around the city taking pics instead of taking to reading the bible more, and (gasp) making a trip on her own would not be looked upon kindly by the sisters and brothers of the church. I would not be surprised if the underlying tone and feel among them is that she got what she deserved, "from God", for her sins. And don't get me wrong. This is not to say that they didn't love or care about her. Just that I haven't met any pentecostals who aren't fundamentalists, and the way she seemed to be living her life would not sit well with the pentecostal church. There is a man interviewed on video, perhaps a friend of the family, who says something to the effect that what happened is it's "no one's fault", but just a husband who let his wife go on a trip to follow her dream. I sense finger-pointing is definitely on full blast, but of course this doesn't only happen in church. And church has evolved in some places.

My point being, I doubt we'll ever get the full story of what was going on in Sarai's life (besides her newfound love of photography) that could have propelled her towards this travel adventure where she met her insanely unfair demise --until maybe a few years from now, when someone decides they could make money from a tell-all. Heart-breaking.


Please excuse the sarcasm, and hopefully I haven't offended anyone with my thoughts. I sure haven't intended to. I can only write from my perspective of some of what I am: Puerto Rican, woman, mother, friend, and exposed for many years to pentecostal mindset; all these together can turn flammable when speaking of perceived injustice. I do not doubt for a second that anything Sarai's family and friends say or do regarding her is meant to uphold and honor Sarai's memory and most importantly, to protect her children.

Thank you for sharing your views and you have not offended anyone...believe me, there are a lot of members here who feel the same and agree with a lot of your points but have chosen to sit on their true thoughts.

For me your comment holds a lot of weight because you are from the same culture and religion, which DOES matter. I've read a ton of comments from posters that to me seem as though they just don't get this.

The story is very tragic and sad. I just feel so bad for those poor children and for the life of me cannot understand why a mom of young children would take such unnecessary risk...no need to get into the the many risk that were taken, we all already know.

 

[Herat]

In the end, if it is just a random killing by this homeless man, I hope we receive no more information. Let it be. For the sake of the family and those little boys.

If it is a random attack by a mentally disturbed individual, those who are innocent of wrongdoing deserve to be publicly absolved of any responsibility by LE.

This includes all those who have been very much exposed to the press and relentless public scrutiny.

 

[ThinkHard]

i dont doubt ss had contact with ppl in istanbul while she was there, bkuz i suspect she went there for a specific reason unrelated to photography. if it was the u.s., LE would have interviewed the family to get insight into her movements, since theyll be the only ones who know who she talked to and what she did, maybe. just throwing weird stuff out there, i find it interesting that the family had enough of a connection in turkey to come up with a homestay for the brother and husband. not saying theres anything sinister going on, just maybe there was a greater pull to turkey than a loose thread of ig connections.

we know that she had contact with at least one IG friend in Istanbul, and LE said they were looking for 3 other IG contacts and at least one of them they were certain she had met in person. She had been talking to Taylan since August on IG, and we have no clue how well she knew her other IG friends. But is suspect there was more socializing going on then we know about.

I'm not convinced that her family would be aware of all the people she was in contact to over IG or how well she was connected to those people. It's just my opinion but I'd venture to guess that her IG connection, though not something she totally hid from her family, were something she kept close to the vest. I think it was a little special world for her, where she was praised as an individual and not as someone's wife, mother, daughter. I think it gave her a great deal of pride and was very important to her. I think feeling connected to people outside her family in this way, in a way that made her feel important and special, and unique, was her pull. She certainly wouldn't be the first person in history to use an Internet application to build self confidence, and even try to live out that fantasy in the flesh. After all some people have walked away from families and marriages for these reasons.

I don't think SS's reasons were so much about finding romance, but more about finding her self, and finding herself as a separate entity to everything she was familiar with back home. And I don't think we should underestimate how strong that pull could be on someone. After all let us not forget she lives in the same place she grew up in, and has been with the same man since she was 17, and has been married to him since she was 19, and has been a mother since she was 22.....that might be a recipe right there for someone to really have a very strong pull to be on her own, even only temporarily.

As far as the "contacts" her brother had. I have a feeling they were not people he knew very well. But NY has a large Turkish population (probably the only really good Turkish rest in the US are in NY), so when this story got out, I'm guessing someone who loosely knew the family and knew they were going to Turkey, knew someone with connections to Turkey, and hooked them up. Turkish people are very hospitable, so it would not take too much convincing of a Turkish person to take in a friend of a friend, especially in those circumstances. My guess is that someone contacting them with the offer to stay with these friends of friends Turkish connection, and they were not asking around for it.

 

[StCirq]

The husband and brother may also have had some assistance from the US consulate in finding an accomodation at this very terrible time. I don't see anything odd about this.

I noticed, and wrote a few thousand threads back, an article that mentioned that David Jimenez arranged free lodging for himself and Steven Sierra in Istanbul through "friends of a friend." He knew someone in Istanbul. Whether through the church or not, he "knew" someone.

 

[KuriousKev]

we know that she had contact with at least one IG friend in Istanbul, and LE said they were looking for 3 other IG contacts and at least one of them they were certain she had met in person. She had been talking to Taylan since August on IG, and we have no clue how well she knew her other IG friends. But is suspect there was more socializing going on then we know about.

I'm not convinced that her family would be aware of all the people she was in contact to over IG or how well she was connected to those people. It's just my opinion but I'd venture to guess that her IG connection, though not something she totally hid from her family, were something she kept close to the vest. I think it was a little special world for her, where she was praised as an individual and not as someone's wife, mother, daughter. I think it gave her a great deal of pride and was very important to her. I think feeling connected to people outside her family in this way, in a way that made her feel important and special, and unique, was her pull. She certainly wouldn't be the first person in history to use an Internet application to build self confidence, and even try to live out that fantasy in the flesh. After all some people have walked away from families and marriages for these reasons.

I don't think SS's reasons were so much about finding romance, but more about finding her self, and finding herself as a separate entity to everything she was familiar with back home. And I don't think we should underestimate how strong that pull could be on someone. After all let us not forget she lives in the same place she grew up in, and has been with the same man since she was 17, and has been married to him since she was 19, and has been a mother since she was 22.....that might be a recipe right there for someone to really have a very strong pull to be on her own, even only temporarily.

No disrespect at all, but I have to snicker every time I read "Find herself" I just find this comment so ridiculous. I feel if there was not the 'man' element to this trip SS would not have gone to Istanbul to "find herself" sorry this is how I feel.

 

[stmarysmead]

If it is a random attack by a mentally disturbed individual, those who are innocent of wrongdoing deserve to be publicly absolved of any responsibility by LE.

This includes all those who have been very much exposed to the press and relentless public scrutiny.

Your point is well taken. It is only in regard to SS, her motives, her activities in Amsterdam , Munich and Instanbul...how and with whom she spent her time...and where and why...let these remain out of the public domain. Clear the Innocent, bring the guilty to justice, but let her rest in peace.

 

[ThinkHard]

I've been enjoying reading everyone's posts. Here are a few of my random thoughts:

1. It's somewhat like the Chandra Levy case--pretty woman mysteriously disappears. At first, you suspected the known figure who said they were "just friends" , then it turns out they had sex, then it turns out to be perhaps a random killer.

2.. Everything pointed to Taylan: last to see her, was supposed to meet her, may have said he walked her home on the 20th, may have said he went to her rental on the 21st with someone else (witness/alibi?) to look for her.

3. Early on, a man from the region on websleuths suggested it was a random murder by a homeless person, which seemed unfathomable: but what about the white car leaving perhaps a body? what about LE saying it looked like a professional kill? what about it looking to LE like she was brought there? couldn't someone have framed the homeless by wrapping her in a person's blanket left in the area? what about the drowning of a woman similarly clothed in the same time period?

4. but does a professional kill someone with a rock? did SS think since it was daylight on a somewhat well-traveled road, that she could venture, climb up and photograph the walls? was she then pulled in for an unconsummated sex act, and in her struggle to be set free, killed with a rock?
So many unanswered questions. Thanks for thinking about it all.

I don't ever remember reading anywhere that Taylan went to her apartment to check on her on the 21st....did I miss something?

 

[ThinkHard]

At the beginning of the investigation I remember Sarai's friend, the one who couldn't go with her on the trip, saying that Sarai had done tons of research on where she was going, giving the clear indication that she was very well prepared to make (and probably especially because she was making) the trip on her own. NY paper--anyone remember that? Could it have just been the friend's sense of guilt (warranted or not) talking?

I do remember reading this but lets not forget in her own IG post she stated she was the most uninformed tourist in Istanbul.

 

[ThinkHard]

Welcome, pbj, nice post. :dance: I found myself reacting aloud to: 4. but does a professional kill someone with a rock?

EXACTLY?

They might if they were trying to MAKE it look unprofessional....

Especially IF you have an American tourist that they will search high and low for...even a professional might know its better to FRAME a murder to look random....then to have no trace at all.

I'm not saying it was professional....I'm just saying their could be reasons why a professional would go this route....why murder with the mark of a professional....if you do not want it to look professional.....could also explain why there is a lot of DNA at the scene, but of homeless people....maybe the professional was still smart enough to not leave his own DNA.

 

[ThinkHard]

Surveillance Photos Released Of S.I. Murder Victim In Turkey

February 17, 2013 11:32 PM

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — For the first time, photos have been released of murdered Staten Island photographer Sarai Sierra – from the very same day she disappeared in Turkey.

Police in Istanbul have released surveillance photos from several different cameras. They show Sierra, a mother of two, walking alone around a coastal section of the city.

Hours later, Sierra vanished. Her remains were found 11 days later along a highway.

Read more: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/02/17/surveillance-photos-released-of-s-i-murder-victim-in-turkey/

Thanks Darkman,

But we have already been discussing these images for days.

 

[ThinkHard]

On Morality, Culture and Web Hookups...

I wish we knew more about Sarai's state of mind and motivation(s) for this trip. It seems to me that the people who were supposed to be closest to her speak about her yet don't say anything. If most families are keen on protecting their dead's reputations, a pentecostal, Puerto Rican family will protect a woman as good as Sarai is said to have been fiercely. Yet I don't know that the world would agree with her family and church friends on what could be said that would tarnish Sarai's image. I think nothing. But we all have our own views on morality.

This quote is what I was referring to earlier when I responded to one of Cmac2's posts related to how much Sarai knew about her destination(s). I'm also posting some more of what the friend said, which is what finally got me writing this.


MAGALENA RODRIGUEZ, SARAI SIERRA'S FRIEND: "She did a lot of homework before she left. She did a lot of research about the area, about where she was going to stay, the safest places to go, and the time and days to travel."

(I wonder what she bases this declaration on, considering some of her other statements.)

Other of friend's quotes from Daily Mail :

'I don't know what to believe when it comes to the people she came into contact with. From recent reports and typical chatter, it seems she and her husband were going through their own rocky period. It happens. Is it hard to believe she may have been at a point in her life she was moving on or looking for adventure? No, I can't say that. Can I say any of that with certainty? No.'

(If she was her life-long, close friend she would notice any changes in Sarai's demeanor, attitude, life pov, new physical address? Ok, she probably wouldn't like to confirm that out of respect for the husband. But we know typical chatter means gossip and the marriage was on the rocks -- no other reason to bring up phrases like "moving on or looking for adventure.")

According to the Daily Mail, Magdalena Rodríguez (they print that she refuses to be identified but it can be confirmed it's the same, only "life-long" friend) "expressed shock at the risky behavior of her life-long friend and that she would stay with Ammer Reduron in Amsterdam despite meeting him online just a few months ago:"

'It doesn't really speak to how we were raised, she said. 'But, like I said before, we grow, we change, we evolve. I would never imagine her being so trusting.

(What does she really know, without having to imagine, about her life-long friend Sarai? Maybe they'd grown apart in the last few years due to family obligations and interests, but everyone else describes her as a risk-taker, adventurous, with a thirst for life and "fearless." But hose might not be ladylike, wifely, god-fearing qualities.)

More from close friend Magdalena Rodríguez:

'It does surprise me as a woman because my personal feeling is you should always be weary and on your guard. Not just in another country, but always.
'There are people I've known for years online...I would never imagine meeting with any one of them alone.
'Also, trusting an area you barely know? People you don't know? Not scrapping one of the "side trips" to upgrade your lodgings to a safer neighborhood...Like I said, WAY too many to name.'

(Thank heavens for good friends!)

Moving on, she believes Sarai might have been naive:

'I don't think you can get enough information on the climate or culture from a few online searches, if anything, you're going to get the rosy-colored pictures painted,' she said.
'From what I've read and seen [of Istanbul], the climate there for women is pretty unstable. And as someone who always looks to understand and educate themselves, there are areas where it behooves you to understand the bias' that are felt towards a woman's presentation...the way they dress, the way they look, if you can see their hair, if there is skin exposed, are you walking alone.'


(Sadly, it appears they've found no one who can knowingly speak to Sarai's true state of mind, intentions, feelings, plans with a greater degree of authenticity and compassion. I know the culture of the kind of church Sarai attended, and perhaps being separated from her husband (and maybe considering divorce), making friends on social networks, walking around the city taking pics instead of taking to reading the bible more, and (gasp) making a trip on her own would not be looked upon kindly by the sisters and brothers of the church. I would not be surprised if the underlying tone and feel among them is that she got what she deserved, "from God", for her sins. And don't get me wrong. This is not to say that they didn't love or care about her. Just that I haven't met any pentecostals who aren't fundamentalists, and the way she seemed to be living her life would not sit well with the pentecostal church. There is a man interviewed on video, perhaps a friend of the family, who says something to the effect that what happened is it's "no one's fault", but just a husband who let his wife go on a trip to follow her dream. I sense finger-pointing is definitely on full blast, but of course this doesn't only happen in church. And church has evolved in some places.

My point being, I doubt we'll ever get the full story of what was going on in Sarai's life (besides her newfound love of photography) that could have propelled her towards this travel adventure where she met her insanely unfair demise --until maybe a few years from now, when someone decides they could make money from a tell-all. Heart-breaking.


Please excuse the sarcasm, and hopefully I haven't offended anyone with my thoughts. I sure haven't intended to. I can only write from my perspective of some of what I am: Puerto Rican, woman, mother, friend, and exposed for many years to pentecostal mindset; all these together can turn flammable when speaking of perceived injustice. I do not doubt for a second that anything Sarai's family and friends say or do regarding her is meant to uphold and honor Sarai's memory and most importantly, to protect her children.

Well I just have to say her friends quote about women in Istanbul is OFF!

Sorry, I'm just so sick of hearing misinformation about Turkey....and for her friend to say that she wants to be educated and learn about places and then go on to say that Istanbul is a place where it matters if your hair shows!!!!! Grrrrrrrrrr thinking that is NOT being educated....thinking that is listening to ridiculously biased and ignorant misconception about Turkey!!!!

I'm sorry this perceived "knowledge" which is really ignorance about Istanbul that keeps creeping into this entire story about Sarai....is the kind of ignorance that really makes me feel embarrassed sometimes to be American.

For the record it only about 30% of the entire female population in Istanbul that covers their hair!

 

[ThinkHard]

No disrespect at all, but I have to snicker every time I read "Find herself" I just find this comment so ridiculous. I feel if there was not the 'man' element to this trip SS would not have gone to Istanbul to "find herself" sorry this is how I feel.

I agree, but I don't think it was just about the man either...I think it was the combination that gave the desire to go enough weight.

And sorry for the cheesy wording

 

[KuriousKev]

Well I just have to say her friends quote about women in Istanbul is OFF!

Depends on who you ask! So....

"Well I just have to say her friends quote about women in Istanbul is ON!"

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Not related but maybe... found this story interesting! Scary too

warnings for women, Istanbul
http://www.virtualtourist.com/trave...Dangers-Istanbul-warnings_for_women-BR-1.html

 

[Herat]

Here is a youtube video titled Sarai Sierra Killer

It does seem to show Z in the short clip by the railway tracks.

Sarai Sierra Killer - YouTube

Apparently this was taken 5 months to Sarai's death. Was there a fire by the tracks where Sarai was found 5 months prior? I don't know if this is authentic or not.

Very very interesting video- thanks for finding it, michellemarls

I have no trouble believing the grey-haired man in the shorts would be capable of moving a 100 # body for 100m.

He does resemble the posted ID shots of Z.