NY NY - Sneha Ann Philip, 31, New York City, 10 Sep 2001

[BeginnerSleuther]

BBM. <modsnip> In fact, residents and doctors are given tremendous leeway with their careers. There are numerous rehab programs that allow them to continue practicing after relatively minor transgressions like those Sneha was accused of. Why? There are too few medical doctors.

Sure, she had done some stupid stuff. Perhaps the worst was having her Cabrini contract non renewed because of tardiness and substance abuse allegations but as we know, she was able to get another contract at St. Vincents'. She also had tremendous incentives and advantages towards completing her internship since her husband was also an intern and her father was a doctor. Even if it didn't work out at St. Vincents' she would have found a place to complete her internship. She would have known all of this. There was nothing on her plate that she could not overcome.

A relatively minor charge that would not have prevented her from a career in medicine, probably even more trivial than her non renewal and her suspension at St Vincent's.

As a physician who is deeply involved in two residency programs and was deeply involved in a residency program in another state, and someone who has intimate knowledge of rehab evaluations for hospitals and medical boards (I've never been sent to one, but have hired people who have), the above is inaccurate.

Someone with this track record would have a VERY tough time getting another internship. She'd have a tough time even staying in any internship. If you look into the stats, there are US-trained MDs who don't even match into residency/internship. To have matched and basically flunked out is a red flag that, in most cases, is too big to overcome.

Also should be noted that physicians involved in those rehab programs have a very steep climb ahead, which is why I no longer send the doctors under my supervision there. I felt they were destroying lives rather than helping. You can Google how these programs operate. I now send them to traditional community based programs. If Sneha was faced with attending one of the ones catering to doctors, I can see how that could have been devastating to her and might have motivated her to run away.

 

[ekardh]

It would be awfully serendipitous that Sneha managed to time her disappearance with one of the worst terrorist attacks in history, found someone to provide a new identity and safe passage out of the country, despite the travel restrictions and tighter security checks, and there's been no trace of her in over 20 years.

Hmmmm... Not buying it. My spidey sense says 9/11 or failing that foul play (from her double life?).

 

[Ozoner]

It would be awfully serendipitous that Sneha managed to time her disappearance with one of the worst terrorist attacks in history, found someone to provide a new identity and safe passage out of the country, despite the travel restrictions and tighter security checks, and there's been no trace of her in over 20 years.

Hmmmm... Not buying it. My spidey sense says 9/11 or failing that foul play (from her double life?).

The extra security checks in the early days involved searches. For instance, they no longer allowed box cutters on board, etc. If Sneha had government-issued passport with a bogus name—which the right amount of money could have gotten—she could have gone anywhere.

However, she needn't have left the country. I doubt that she would have stayed in New York City, for she would have wanted to relocate to a place where no one would recognize her. She might have remained in the United States, though. And she might not have left New York immediately; she could have holed up in her lover's apartment or house for weeks or months.

Donald Eugene Webb was on the FBI's ten-most-wanted list and hid in a secret room in his wife's house for decades. (I don't mean that he spent all of his time in that room, but he was able to hide there whenever necessary.)

Harriet Jacobs, a runaway slave, spent seven years hiding in an attic in which she wasn't even able to stand up.

Sneha would not have needed to go to such extremes, but she might have remained hidden until she had documents with which she could travel.

People keep mentioning 9/11, but that may be completely unrelated to Sneha's disappearance. She didn't need to "time" her disappearance. The terrorist attacks occurred around the same time, but so what? That could simply be a coincidence.

Suppose Sneha had disappeared under the same circumstances but 9/11 hadn't happened. What would the prevailing theory be? Keep in mind that she had had a court appearance on the same day that she was last seen, she may have had a heated argument with her husband outside the courthouse (depending on which sources you choose to believe), and she was facing the prospect of losing a second residency, which would have been humiliating for her. It was not a run-of-the-mill day for her. She had major stressors in her personal life intersecting on that day.

If she walked away, she walked away from a career that she did not seem to enjoy and that had rejected her, and she walked away from a husband who might have simply been a cover for her true sexual orientation. (She may have walked away from some student loan debt and/or credit card debt as well.)

If Sneha's DNA is ever found amongst the remains of the 9/11 victims, then I will (sorrowfully) acknowledge that I was mistaken, but for now, I think that she took a powder.

 

[ekardh]

The extra security checks in the early days involved searches. For instance, they no longer allowed box cutters on board, etc. If Sneha had government-issued passport with a bogus name—which the right amount of money could have gotten—she could have gone anywhere.

However, she needn't have left the country. I doubt that she would have stayed in New York City, for she would have wanted to relocate to a place where no one would recognize her. She might have remained in the United States, though. And she might not have left New York immediately; she could have holed up in her lover's apartment or house for weeks or months.

Donald Eugene Webb was on the FBI's ten-most-wanted list and hid in a secret room in his wife's house for decades. (I don't mean that he spent all of his time in that room, but he was able to hide there whenever necessary.)

Harriet Jacobs, a runaway slave, spent seven years hiding in an attic in which she wasn't even able to stand up.

Sneha would not have needed to go to such extremes, but she might have remained hidden until she had documents with which she could travel.

People keep mentioning 9/11, but that may be completely unrelated to Sneha's disappearance. She didn't need to "time" her disappearance. The terrorist attacks occurred around the same time, but so what? That could simply be a coincidence.

Suppose Sneha had disappeared under the same circumstances but 9/11 hadn't happened. What would the prevailing theory be? Keep in mind that she had had a court appearance on the same day that she was last seen, she may have had a heated argument with her husband outside the courthouse (depending on which sources you choose to believe), and she was facing the prospect of losing a second residency, which would have been humiliating for her. It was not a run-of-the-mill day for her. She had major stressors in her personal life intersecting on that day.

If she walked away, she walked away from a career that she did not seem to enjoy and that had rejected her, and she walked away from a husband who might have simply been a cover for her true sexual orientation. (She may have walked away from some student loan debt and/or credit card debt as well.)

If Sneha's DNA is ever found amongst the remains of the 9/11 victims, then I will (sorrowfully) acknowledge that I was mistaken, but for now, I think that she took a powder.

With respect, you're talking about two fugitives whose survival hinged on staying hidden.

Sneha may have been in a rough patch with her life. The same goes for millions of us out there. How many of us turn our backs on everyone and everything to disappear into the sunset? Do you really think Sneha has spent the past 20 years incognito? Do you really think her personality and lifestyle befitted someone capable of keeping a low profile? From what we've gleaned about Sneha, she seems far too chaotic and disorganised to not only plan the perfect escape but to avoid detection all these years.

Also, I think it's kind of naughty to hypothesize "What if 9/11 hadn't happened?" You can't just take something like that out of the equation. It was a catastrophic event that happened in close proximity to her apartment. It's not like it happened on the other side of town.

 

[Ozoner]

With respect, you're talking about two fugitives whose survival hinged on staying hidden.

Sneha may have been in a rough patch with her life. The same goes for millions of us out there. How many of us turn our backs on everyone and everything to disappear into the sunset? Do you really think Sneha has spent the past 20 years incognito? Do you really think her personality and lifestyle befitted someone capable of keeping a low profile? From what we've gleaned about Sneha, she seems far too chaotic and disorganized to not only plan the perfect escape but to avoid detection all these years.

Also, I think it's kind of naughty to hypothesize "What if 9/11 hadn't happened?" You can't just take something like that out of the equation. It was a catastrophic event that happened in close proximity to her apartment. It's not like it happened on the other side of town.

Who said that Sneha is keeping a low profile? She could be painting the town every night—a different town under a different name. If most of her close contacts were within the Indian community, then she could have traveled somewhere with a large Indian population such as Belize or the United Arab Emirates, or she could have moved to another metropolitan area in the U.S. such as Dallas or Miami. This case did not get very much exposure in the years following 9/11. She would not have had to be overly concerned about being recognized, especially if she changed her look. Everyone's appearance changes somewhat over time, so even someone familiar with the case might not be able to recognize her today.

Sneha could have died in the World Trade Center, sure. But there is no evidence that places her there. If she was the woman in the apartment surveillance video, then she probably could not have gotten inside the Twin Towers. Moreover, she hasn't shown up in a single picture from that day, and people were taking pictures and recording video left and right.

If she was not the woman in the surveillance video, then there is no evidence that she was alive after 9/10.

 

[SimplyCass]

Who said that Sneha is keeping a low profile? She could be painting the town every night—a different town under a different name. If most of her close contacts were within the Indian community, then she could have traveled somewhere with a large Indian population such as Belize or the United Arab Emirates, or she could have moved to another metropolitan area in the U.S. such as Dallas or Miami. This case did not get very much exposure in the years following 9/11. She would not have had to be overly concerned about being recognized, especially if she changed her look. Everyone's appearance changes somewhat over time, so even someone familiar with the case might not be able to recognize her today.

Sneha could have died in the World Trade Center, sure. But there is no evidence that places her there. If she was the woman in the apartment surveillance video, then she probably could not have gotten inside the Twin Towers. Moreover, she hasn't shown up in a single picture from that day, and people were taking pictures and recording video left and right.

If she was not the woman in the surveillance video, then there is no evidence that she was alive after 9/10.

There is also zero evidence to indicate she tried to start a new identity. The family's PI found nothing to even suggest that it could be happening. That idea comes from the NYPD. I think it's a pretty wild out-there theory that needs to have at least something solid to sustain it, otherwise it gets too wildly speculative.

Yes, her professional career was in trouble, her marriage was strained, there are allegations that she had an affair with a woman. None of that, however, leads me to conclude that she was plotting an escape, a way out, even one that was delayed or not fully thought-out before 9/11.

In law enforcement, there is a syndrome known as “detective myopia.” Former Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl F. Gates told me he suspected that FBI agents had succumbed to this condition, becoming so focused on [SH] that they lost their objectivity. “This mostly happens when the case is important and there is pressure to solve it,” Gates says.

The Wrong Man

In the fall of 2001, a nation reeling from the horror of 9/11 was rocked by a series of deadly anthrax attacks. As the pressure to find a culprit mounted, the FBI, abetted by the media, found one. The wrong one. This is the story of how federal authorities blew the biggest anti-terror...

www.theatlantic.com

MOO is that the NYPD had a similar, hyper-obsessive focus on the theory that she had started a new identity that was 'backed up' by those things going on in Sneha's life.

 

[GatorFL]

As a physician who is deeply involved in two residency programs and was deeply involved in a residency program in another state, and someone who has intimate knowledge of rehab evaluations for hospitals and medical boards (I've never been sent to one, but have hired people who have), the above is inaccurate.

Someone with this track record would have a VERY tough time getting another internship. She'd have a tough time even staying in any internship. If you look into the stats, there are US-trained MDs who don't even match into residency/internship. To have matched and basically flunked out is a red flag that, in most cases, is too big to overcome.

Also should be noted that physicians involved in those rehab programs have a very steep climb ahead, which is why I no longer send the doctors under my supervision there. I felt they were destroying lives rather than helping. You can Google how these programs operate. I now send them to traditional community based programs. If Sneha was faced with attending one of the ones catering to doctors, I can see how that could have been devastating to her and might have motivated her to run away.

We will have to disagree on this. I also work in healthcare and I know firsthand that there are numerous rehab programs for doctors, and sadly some do practice when they probably should not. I do know there could have been challenges with the NY medical board ahead for her if she was not honest about the outcome of her unresolved case. There are also numerous medical board attorneys that could have been employed to help her throughout all of that. Abrams Fensterman Attorneys at Law - Medical Licensing But from the available information, there is zero indication from the time period in question that Sneha was not going to be able to complete her residency. She was not fired from Cabrini, her contract was not renewed. She was promptly hired at St Vincents.

The only specific information we have is from a recent interview from one of her Cabrini supervisors, referred to as Dr. E. This information is available on the Missing on 9/11 podcast, episode 6. Missing on 9/11 | iHeart In it, Dr. E said Sneha was a good doctor and efficient at her work but Sneha had confided in her that felt pushed into medicine and did it not seem like she wanted to be a doctor. Dr. E also thought it was more likely that Sneha had run off than been a victim of 9/11. If you haven't listened, I recommend this episode but the others are not that great.

 

[Ozoner]

There is also zero evidence to indicate she tried to start a new identity.

Snipped.

I have to disagree quite strenuously. We know that she purchased lingerie and linens and took them somewhere other than her own home. That suggests to me that she was leading a double life of some kind prior to her disappearance. I see that as a potential prelude to pulling a vanishing act.

 

[Ozoner]

The only specific information we have is from a recent interview from one of her Cabrini supervisors, referred to as Dr. E. This information is available on the Missing on 9/11 podcast, episode 6. Missing on 9/11 | iHeart In it, Dr. E said Sneha was a good doctor and efficient at her work but Sneha had confided in her that felt pushed into medicine and did it not seem like she wanted to be a doctor. Dr. E also thought it was more likely that Sneha had run off than been a victim of 9/11. If you haven't listened, I recommend this episode but the others are not that great.

Did you listen to the other episodes? Some of the others have very useful information. (I remember listening to some of the early episodes quite a while ago, before some of the later episodes had been posted).

Episode #8 talks about the Post Secret postcard, which was published before Sneha's story was a major news story.

Episode #10 reiterated some statistics about 9/11 WTC deaths.
These statistics actually come from the reports published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
- 99% of civilians who were below the points of impact were successfully evacuated
- Only 1% of civilians who were below the points of impact died
- 147 people died on the planes
- Only 18 bystanders or people in nearby buildings were killed (by falling debris or jet fuel)
- 1,974 civilians died at or above the points of impact
- 148 civilians died below the points of impact
- 421 first responders died*, including (*415 are named in Wikipedia)
------ 403 who worked for the NYPD (23), FDNY (343), or Port Authority (37)
------Classifications vary for the remaining 18 (or 12)
------------8 paramedics named in Wikipedia (7 according to Walczak)
------------Wikipedia lists 1 federal officers, but Walczak says there were 2
------------1 patrolman from the New York Fire Patrol (not mentioned by Walczak)
------------3 New York State Court Officers (not mentioned by Walczak)
------------Walczak mentions 9 volunteers, possibly including the 3 court officers above
- No information is known about 17 of the victims

This article also relates that of the 624 occupants who died in the South Tower, 618 were at or above the point of impact.

One theory that can be virtually ruled out is the theory that Sneha ran into the World Trade Center to help. For one thing, people who needed medical treatment were directed to triage sites set up outside the towers. Even if Sneha had wanted to help, it's unlikely that she would have tried to enter either of the towers, and it's even less likely that she would have been allowed to enter. Not only that, but it's probable that some survivors would have remembered her, and no one has recalled seeing anyone fitting Sneha's description participating in the rescue efforts or entering either tower. She also wasn't captured in any of the known photos or videos taken outside the Twin Towers.

The odds that Sneha could have died at the World Trade Center if she was not in the towers prior to the first impact are astronomically low, all things considered.

The only way that a WTC death makes any sense at all is if she was already in one of the towers above one of the points of impacts. Even though Sneha's mother claimed that Sneha had expressed a desire to check out Windows on the World, the wedding that she would have attended there was not scheduled until April of 2002. Sneha had seven months to check out that restaurant. How likely is it that she would have checked it out first thing in the morning after a night away from home?

To me, the case for Sneha's having died in the WTC collapse is a weak one.

I think that Sneha could have succeeded in running away if she had help, and she apparently spent the night with someone who has never come forward, so someone is keeping a secret. It's been argued that the person Sneha was with might have died in the collapse as well, but Sneha cannot be connected to anyone who is known to have died in the collapse, and if another person who was not known to have been there also died, then there should be a second missing person from 9/11. The WTC scenario just doesn't add up.

It is entirely plausible that the 9/11 disaster caused Sneha to have an epiphany. Maybe she realized that life is too short not to live the life that she wanted to live. An unplanned disappearance would have been very difficult without help, but it is likely that she had help. It could have been as simple as another woman who vaguely resembled Sneha allowing Sneha to leave the country using that other woman's passport.

 

[GatorFL]

Did you listen to the other episodes? Some of the others have very useful information. (I remember listening to some of the early episodes quite a while ago, before some of the later episodes had been posted).

Episode #8 talks about the Post Secret postcard, which was published before Sneha's story was a major news story.

Episode #10 reiterated some statistics about 9/11 WTC deaths.
These statistics actually come from the reports published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
- 99% of civilians who were below the points of impact were successfully evacuated
- Only 1% of civilians who were below the points of impact died
- 147 people died on the planes
- Only 18 bystanders or people in nearby buildings were killed (by falling debris or jet fuel)
- 1,974 civilians died at or above the points of impact
- 148 civilians died below the points of impact
- 421 first responders died*, including (*415 are named in Wikipedia)
------ 403 who worked for the NYPD (23), FDNY (343), or Port Authority (37)
------Classifications vary for the remaining 18 (or 12)
------------8 paramedics named in Wikipedia (7 according to Walczak)
------------Wikipedia lists 1 federal officers, but Walczak says there were 2
------------1 patrolman from the New York Fire Patrol (not mentioned by Walczak)
------------3 New York State Court Officers (not mentioned by Walczak)
------------Walczak mentions 9 volunteers, possibly including the 3 court officers above
- No information is known about 17 of the victims

This article also relates that of the 624 occupants who died in the South Tower, 618 were at or above the point of impact.

One theory that can be virtually ruled out is the theory that Sneha ran into the World Trade Center to help. For one thing, people who needed medical treatment were directed to triage sites set up outside the towers. Even if Sneha had wanted to help, it's unlikely that she would have tried to enter either of the towers, and it's even less likely that she would have been allowed to enter. Not only that, but it's probable that some survivors would have remembered her, and no one has recalled seeing anyone fitting Sneha's description participating in the rescue efforts or entering either tower. She also wasn't captured in any of the known photos or videos taken outside the Twin Towers.

The odds that Sneha could have died at the World Trade Center if she was not in the towers prior to the first impact are astronomically low, all things considered.

The only way that a WTC death makes any sense at all is if she was already in one of the towers above one of the points of impacts. Even though Sneha's mother claimed that Sneha had expressed a desire to check out Windows on the World, the wedding that she would have attended there was not scheduled until April of 2002. Sneha had seven months to check out that restaurant. How likely is it that she would have checked it out first thing in the morning after a night away from home?

To me, the case for Sneha's having died in the WTC collapse is a weak one.

I think that Sneha could have succeeded in running away if she had help, and she apparently spent the night with someone who has never come forward, so someone is keeping a secret. It's been argued that the person Sneha was with might have died in the collapse as well, but Sneha cannot be connected to anyone who is known to have died in the collapse, and if another person who was not known to have been there also died, then there should be a second missing person from 9/11. The WTC scenario just doesn't add up.

It is entirely plausible that the 9/11 disaster caused Sneha to have an epiphany. Maybe she realized that life is too short not to live the life that she wanted to live. An unplanned disappearance would have been very difficult without help, but it is likely that she had help. It could have been as simple as another woman who vaguely resembled Sneha allowing Sneha to leave the country using that other woman's passport.

Yes, I did not care for most of the podcast, especially the absolutely terrible bonus episodes.

 

[GatorFL]

Snipped.

I have to disagree quite strenuously. We know that she purchased lingerie and linens and took them somewhere other than her own home. That suggests to me that she was leading a double life of some kind prior to her disappearance. I see that as a potential prelude to pulling a vanishing act.

She could have simply set the bags down when the plane struck and they were lost forever. I also don't think it was lingerie, it was shoes and linens.

 

[Ozoner]

She could have simply set the bags down when the plane struck and they were lost forever. I also don't think it was lingerie, it was shoes and linens.

Why would she have taken them into the WTC? The WTC was 900 feet from her apartment. If the theory is that she went to check out Windows on the World, it doesn't make sense that she would have hauled 2 shopping bags of merchandise up to the 107th floor of the North Tower rather than dropping them off at her apartment 1/6 of a mile away.

We still don't know where Sneha spent the evening of the 10th. To me that information is key. You don't buy linens and shoes and take them to someone else's place for a first date, so I think that she spent the evening with someone she knew well.

One of the first things that I would do in order to prove or disprove the WTC theory is go through the list of known victims, make a list of the women of Indian descent, and interview the living friends and family members of those women to see whether any connection can be found to Sneha. It seems really unlikely that Sneha would have gone to WOTW by herself after a evening away from home. It seems more likely that she would have gone with the person with whom she spent the evening, and the Century 21 clerk's recollection of a second Indian woman with Sneha is the only real lead to who that person could be.

If that woman died in the WTC collapse, that would explain why she has never come forward.

 

[GatorFL]

Why would she have taken them into the WTC? The WTC was 900 feet from her apartment. If the theory is that she went to check out Windows on the World, it doesn't make sense that she would have hauled 2 shopping bags of merchandise up to the 107th floor of the North Tower rather than dropping them off at her apartment 1/6 of a mile away.

We still don't know where Sneha spent the evening of the 10th. To me that information is key. You don't buy linens and shoes and take them to someone else's place for a first date, so I think that she spent the evening with someone she knew well.

One of the first things that I would do in order to prove or disprove the WTC theory is go through the list of known victims, make a list of the women of Indian descent, and interview the living friends and family members of those women to see whether any connection can be found to Sneha. It seems really unlikely that Sneha would have gone to WOTW by herself after a evening away from home. It seems more likely that she would have gone with the person with whom she spent the evening, and the Century 21 clerk's recollection of a second Indian woman with Sneha is the only real lead to who that person could be.

If that woman died in the WTC collapse, that would explain why she has never come forward.

Nobody knows where the bags went. She didn't make it back to her apartment so they were left somewhere and lost forever. I think they could have been left in a hotel nearby. Marriott makes sense, it was on the WTC property, she leaves the bags in the room, checks out WOTW and never makes it down. It collapsed and if she was there with somebody they certainly wouldn't be looking for Sneha's shopping bags if they lived.

Regarding researching all Indian women who died in the attacks, why? There is an easier place to begin. Somebody needs to go to the court and request the case file. She was ruled a 9/11 victim based upon the evidence presented there, and that would be a more efficient place to begin. I don't think the court file including the transcript has ever been digitized and published online. It should be. NYPD is not giving up the case file, so that's a non starter. I've obtained court and case files in other mysteries and I've always found some interesting stuff.

As you've pointed out, the Indian woman she was supposedly seen shopping with was not supported on the C21 video. So there is no telling who, male or female, Sneha was with on 9/10. Or even if she was with somebody. Which is why I suggested the court file.

That's the thing with this one, there's always another angle no matter how you look at it. I personally think this will never be truly solved.

 

[GatorFL]

I got my first phone late in 1995. It was a Nokia, I remember. I traveled a lot for my work so I needed a phone when they became more mainstream. That being said, there were a lot of people who you thought would have a phone back then but used pagers instead. A pager was not only convenient but also probably more reliable for those in the medical profession like Sneha . The range of a pager isn't much more than two miles. I presume that SP lived within that 2 mile radius of the WTC and her job and actually had a pager. When I had that phone I would travel through large areas where there was no service. So I wonder when people say Sneha had a cell phone they might be referring to a pager.

I don't know whether Sneha was at the WTC because she was running toward danger but there is a good possibility she was going to go there for breakfast based on what she told her mom. There were 198 elevators in the WTC; express elevators that could carry 55 people. So it's not beyond the realm of possibility that Sneha was on one of those elevators going to WOTW when the planes hit. She could have been with someone along with many other people who were unfortunate to be on those elevators when the planes struck. I always wondered how many tourists, especially single travellers were in the towers on 9/11 who have never been heard from again.

One of the interesting things I read about 9/11 is that many of the people who had worked there when the WTC was bombed in 1993 left immediately when the first plane hit. They'd already gone through the terror of the first attack and found out first hand what can happen if you stuck around. One survivor Dharam Pal said if he hadn't experienced the 1993 bombing he may have decided to stay put based on the established policy of evacuating the floor with the fire and two floors above and below that floor.

https://www.nfpa.org/-/media/Files/News-and-Research/Publications-and-media/NFPA-Journal/journal0902humanfactor.ashx

My working theory on this case is that she was indeed an elevator victim.

 

[GatorFL]

I live in NYC and would be interested in trying to get my hands on the file. I’m assuming it would be in the possession of the NYPD.

You need to go to the NY Court to get the court file. The case file will not be released by NYPD, they probably don't even know where it is.

 

[Vern]

Snipped.

That happens with most news stories, so I don't doubt it. However, there are some facts that can't be ignored.

1) Sneha cannot be placed in or near the Twin Towers on 9/11.
2) Sneha spent the night somewhere other than her own home on 9/10, and we do not know where.
3) No one has come forward and acknowledged being in the company of Sneha on 9/10.
4) Sneha had several bags of new purchases with her on 9/10, including bed linens and lingerie, and those items have never surfaced.

I think that it is possible to draw some conclusions from what we know.

First, the Century 21 store was not far from Sneha's apartment. If the linens and lingerie were meant to be used at home, it would have been easy for her to drop them off there even if she had plans for the evening. We can conclude that they were meant to be used elsewhere.

Second, despite the allegations that Sneha sometimes went home from bars with strangers, it stands to reason that she did not plan to do so on 9/10. It would not have made sense for her to buy bed linens and take them with her to a bar in case she met a stranger. It stands to reason that she had an evening planned with someone.

I have not heard any arguments that convince me that Sneha died in the terrorist attacks; I do not see any evidence that makes that scenario any more likely than the other possible scenarios. If I were to judge the case strictly from the facts on paper, I might consider foul play on the night of 9/10 the strongest possibility. However, when I take into account the impression that I have of Sneha's personality, I fall solidly in the voluntary disappearance camp.

Don't forget, Manhattan is one of the wealthiest areas in the world. There are plenty of people in Manhattan who would have had the wherewithal to help Sneha stage a disappearance.



I have never heard anyone say that he or she remembers seeing the video. I wish that law enforcement would release it so that people could decide for themselves whether Sneha is the woman in the video. If the woman was someone else, maybe that woman would come forward and identify herself. It doesn't seem like it would hurt anything to release the video.

Another question I have is, if Ron went through Sneha's cell phone, where was the phone? Why didn't Sneha have it with her? That suggests to me that she could have had a second, secret phone that she used to communicate with whomever she planned to see on the evening of September 10th.

I'd just to piece this out somewhat as I see possibilities that you do not:

Your salient points:

1) Sneha cannot be placed in or near the Twin Towers on 9/11.
2) Sneha spent the night somewhere other than her own home on 9/10, and we do not know where.
3) No one has come forward and acknowledged being in the company of Sneha on 9/10.
4) Sneha had several bags of new purchases with her on 9/10, including bed linens and lingerie, and those items have never surfaced.

1) We have her mother bringing WOTW into the picture; we also have her apartment close to the WTC; she had some medical experience - she may have tried to help at the scene (many did exactly at);
2) I don't think we need to know where she spent the night of 9/10 ... it's about where was she the next morning (see my #1);
3) No they haven't. What if was someone who perished with her or in the tower seperatley? Someone whose family knew of this mystery individual's plans to go there on 9/11 but not of a plan to be there with Sneha? Someone who worked in the tower perhaps and whom is on the known victim list (remains recovered or not);
4) There are humans who we KNOW were in those towers when they came down of whom not a shred of remains/DNA evidence has been found. I am absolutely not surprised that fragments of linens or lingerie weren't found either.

On a side note about the lingerie and sheets purchase being "Evidence": What?! How!?
Someone also posted about how she left her place then shopped at Century 21 then failed to return those items to her home so they MUST have been intended for use with someone else/elsewhere. I disagree. If I am on my way somewhere and stop to shop, make purchases between point A (Home) and B (Intended Destination), I am not returinging to Point A after stopping in between to simply put stuff back in my place before I carry on to point B ... I'll take those purchases with me and bring them home with me when I return there. The assumption that she didn't return home with them prior to going to her destination means they were to be used with someone/somewhere else is just that - an assumption that is not borne out in reality of how we do things. I don't bring my prescription or new shoes home before I head somewhere else to do something else. It goes home with me when I'm ready to go home.

In any case, she didn't make it home. She's on the recognized victim's list. No one needs to show us a video as we are not the experts, or one's best suited to identify her in that footage - that would be her family's expertize and my sense is that they were consulted as it should be.

 

[BeginnerSleuther]

We will have to disagree on this. I also work in healthcare and I know firsthand that there are numerous rehab programs for doctors, and sadly some do practice when they probably should not. I do know there could have been challenges with the NY medical board ahead for her if she was not honest about the outcome of her unresolved case. There are also numerous medical board attorneys that could have been employed to help her throughout all of that. Abrams Fensterman Attorneys at Law - Medical Licensing But from the available information, there is zero indication from the time period in question that Sneha was not going to be able to complete her residency. She was not fired from Cabrini, her contract was not renewed. She was promptly hired at St Vincents.

The only specific information we have is from a recent interview from one of her Cabrini supervisors, referred to as Dr. E. This information is available on the Missing on 9/11 podcast, episode 6. Missing on 9/11 | iHeart In it, Dr. E said Sneha was a good doctor and efficient at her work but Sneha had confided in her that felt pushed into medicine and did it not seem like she wanted to be a doctor. Dr. E also thought it was more likely that Sneha had run off than been a victim of 9/11. If you haven't listened, I recommend this episode but the others are not that great.

I will happily agree to disagree. But if there's any indication she was sent to a physician health program (i.e. rehab for doctors), that changes my opinion about what happened to her. I've authored papers on patients wrapped up in the physician health program system committing suicide. So if this is conjecture, that's cool, but if she was sent to one of those awful programs, I'll respectfully disagree with the above.

 

[GatorFL]

I will happily agree to disagree. But if there's any indication she was sent to a physician health program (i.e. rehab for doctors), that changes my opinion about what happened to her. I've authored papers on patients wrapped up in the physician health program system committing suicide. So if this is conjecture, that's cool, but if she was sent to one of those awful programs, I'll respectfully disagree with the above.

She was suspended by St Vincent's for not going to mandated rehab, I have never heard it called PHP though. Although with her prompt rehire, I suspect it was but is total speculation on my part. JMO

Again, we have zero evidence she was not going to be able to complete her residency. I think she only had a year left.

 

[BeginnerSleuther]

She was suspended by St Vincent's for not going to mandated rehab, I have never heard it called PHP though. Although with her prompt rehire, I suspect it was but is total speculation on my part. JMO

Again, we have zero evidence she was not going to be able to complete her residency. I think she only had a year left.

Google "physician health programs harming doctors" or anything similar. That's what mandated rehab is for doctors, unless they have a superior who sends them elsewhere (as I do). These places report to the medical board and they can be a very traumatic experience for the physician (some commit suicide). It's obviously speculation as it pertains to Sneha. But let's say that I heard about any physician going to mandated rehab (which just for knowledge purposes, the evidence shows does not work) at a PHP and then disappears, my immediate thought would be self-harm. My second would be they ran away. That's how destructive some of these programs can be and why I never send physicians there anymore. Again only speculation here, but I'll have to remind myself of the details of Sneha's case because learning this has me really considering that she left or harmed herself whereas previously I thought for sure she was killed in the 9/11 attacks as her family believes.

 

[GatorFL]

Google "physician health programs harming doctors" or anything similar. That's what mandated rehab is for doctors, unless they have a superior who sends them elsewhere (as I do). These places report to the medical board and they can be a very traumatic experience for the physician (some commit suicide). It's obviously speculation as it pertains to Sneha. But let's say that I heard about any physician going to mandated rehab (which just for knowledge purposes, the evidence shows does not work) at a PHP and then disappears, my immediate thought would be self-harm. My second would be they ran away. That's how destructive some of these programs can be and why I never send physicians there anymore. Again only speculation here, but I'll have to remind myself of the details of Sneha's case because learning this has me really considering that she left or harmed herself whereas previously I thought for sure she was killed in the 9/11 attacks as her family believes.

I am familiar with PHP's and have heard through shop talk about several physicians who indeed made it through one of these programs. I understand these programs can be pretty minor, like going to a weekly AA meeting for 6 months to something quite long, such as a several month inpatient detox and expensive, $60,000 +. However I am not in a management position of providers so I definitely do not have your level of expertise with these programs. I have a question: were alternative programs offered in NY in 2001?

Where I've personally seen issues were physicians who did not abide by their contracts and/or reporting required issues to their medical board which cratered their careers. Couple I saw were post residency. Very sad indeed.

Her case was investigated by the NYPD, by a retired FBI agent who was her husband's PI, and the case litigated through a couple levels of the NY Court system. There was never any evidence found that she ran off. Not one bit of preparation through her computer, bank records, phone, etc. Nor was there ever a hint of evidence that she relocated, changed her name, etc. It is possible but not probable.