Rebecca Nalepa - suicide or murder? #1

[JoeFromLB]

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jul/15/woman-mansion-mystery-devoted-tycoon-boyfriend/

Woman in mansion mystery devoted to tycoon boyfriend

July 15, 2011

CORONADO — The Arizona woman who was found hanging from the balcony of her boyfriend’s historic Coronado oceanfront mansion was described by her former employer Friday as a committed professional and “full of life.”

Rebecca M. Zahau, 32, worked at Horizon Eye Specialists & Lasik Center in north Phoenix as a certified ophthalmic technician, aiding doctors in Lasik and cataract surgeries, said company CEO Michael J. Trier.

“We are saddened and troubled by the circumstances of her death,” Trier said. “It is our hope that justice can be served for Rebecca.”

Zahau, who began working there in April 2008, left the job in December to devote more time to her boyfriend, Jonah Shacknai, founder of Medicis Pharmaceuticals Corp., and his three children from previous marriages.

“She was very good with our patients. She was very committed for several years to her career,” he said. “She was a personality very much full of life.”

 

[Melanie]

Grrr...Paul Pfingst. Don't like him. He rec'd a lot of bullets in the Chelsea King/John Gardner case. He felt no need to track John Gardner. Look what happened.

"For example, someone who is 20 years old and had consensual sex with a 17-year-old is registered as a sex offender. In 15 years, should that person be followed by law enforcement? I think not," he said.

Now he's showing up in this case?

He's just another Jose Baez in San Diego -- with a little more experience!

In the few years since losing a bitter election for a third term as the county's top law enforcer, Pfingst has become one of the best-known local criminal defense lawyers, with a calendar full of high-profile cases.

He sees the dollars in this case, and actually showed up at the home on the NIGHT when Rebecca died. This has ICK written all over it. He was turned away!!

Oh, don't get me started on Paul Pfingst. But I bet the San Diegan's know where I stand.

Mel

 

[Quester]

Autopsy to Be Conducted on Jonah Shacknai's Son

Police say that is routine, though they also will take a closer look at the death of the 6-year-old boy.

Coronado police are looking more closely at the July 11 fall that led to the death ...

The examination will be Monday or Tuesday ...

Corbin also offered more details of the 911 call ...

A 13-year-old girl called for help following the boy's fall. The teen, Zahau and [the boy] were the only ones in the residence at the time.

[spoksperson] Corbin warned that the police continue to approach the boy's July 11 fall as an accident, but are taking another look because of Zahau's death.

http://coronado.patch.com/articles/autopsy-to-be-conducted-on-jonah-shacknais-son

 

[Invisible]

So if the sister talked to her at midnight - what on earth happened between midnight and 6:48 AM? That's the million dollar question.

MOO

Mel

Does anyone think it is strange that there was a midnight phone call? I never call anyone after 8 p.m., but that is just me.

 

[MsFacetious]

Authorities would not say exactly how the two incidents may be connected, but said the boy's reported accident needs to be looked at in light of the death of Rebecca M. Zahau, 32.

Investigators believe Zahau's death was either a homicide or a suicide, Frank said.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jul/18/death-of-shacknai-boy-sparks-investigation/

Right - there are two other children aged 13 and 14. G. Shacknai lived in Arizona with her mom, and I assume the other teen did as well. If you dig into FB you can find where she was running for sophomore class vice president in a school in Phoenix, AZ. Not sure if I can say the name of the school here.

Interesting, I finally found out when Rebecca was found.

Adam Shacknai, the brother of homeowner Jonah Shacknai, discovered the victim's body and called 911 around 6:48 a.m. Wednesday and reported that a woman, who was staying at the mansion, was in distress, according to deputies.

So if the sister talked to her at midnight - what on earth happened between midnight and 6:48 AM? That's the million dollar question.

MOO

Mel

Though I'm having a hard time believing any type of suicide theory...

She was very shaken up by Max's condition earlier... then she sounded perfectly okay at midnight, then a few hours after sounding perfectly okay, she turns up dead?

It isn't uncommon for people to become happier before they commit suicide... because they have made the decision to do it...

I do believe that is the only thing I've seen to point at all towards suicide.

I guess I can't post this link ... it's AZ Central Newspaper, but it's on FB. Some locals are posting on this article:

http://www.azcentral.com/business/a...i-coronado-child-dies-from-injuries-0717.html

Comments on this article, not direct quotes, claim that

... Adam Shacknai would not say where his brother Jonah was at the time of the death. (from a San Diego news report)

.. Dina Shacknai was in the home when Max fell down the stairs.

If it is true that Dina was in the home... I wonder if maybe she and Rebecca got into a fight and Max got knocked off the stairs in the confusion?

 

[time]

respectuflly snipped>
Interesting, I finally found out when Rebecca was found.

Adam Shacknai, the brother of homeowner Jonah Shacknai, discovered the victim's body and called 911 around 6:48 a.m. Wednesday and reported that a woman, who was staying at the mansion, was in distress, according to deputies.

So if the sister talked to her at midnight - what on earth happened between midnight and 6:48 AM? That's the million dollar question.

MOO

Mel

Hmmm ... do people normally commit suicide this time of day?

Her death was closer to 1 1/2 days after Max's accident then.

For what it;s worth ...

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jul/14/woman-found-dead-spreckels-mansion-identified/

His first wife, Kimberly, filed for divorce in December 1998, and the feuding lasted until they finally settled in February 2001. The fight revolved around money and the custody of their two children, now ages 14 and 13.

By that time, Shacknai’s company was already earning him millions of dollars. The couple’s 1997 tax return, which was disclosed during the divorce, showed $6.7 million in income. Their 1998 return showed $16.99 million. She accused him of moving tens of millions of dollars to bank accounts she didn’t know about in the years before the divorce. He denied the accusation.

... A man who answered the phone Thursday at the South Carolina home of the ex-wife, who now goes by the name Kimberly James, said the family was not commenting to the media on the recent events.

I don't know if t he following was scrubbed from a news story or not... it only seems to appear in the cache now connected to the same article at signonsandiego

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&sa=X&e...gc.r_pw.&fp=13d83150bb857caa&biw=1301&bih=852

Katy Davis, 28, worked for his second wife, Dina Shacknai, two years ago as a personal assistant in Paradise Valley, Ariz., a wealthy enclave near Scottsdale where the couple had a multimillion-dollar mansion. Davis said the divorce was very acrimonious. “Things were really rough, emotions were high

 

[time]

Is there a link somewhere? Every article I've read indicates the only person at home was the girlfriend and the brother? Or are we talking about Max's accident?

I have no idea why the daughter would go to SC, as her base was in Phoenix, AZ. But wealthy people do travel all over - so who knows.

This gets more mysterious by the minute.

Mel

Sorry, Mel, my fault. I think the comment was indicating during Max's accident and that Dina was there - I haven't sen that mentioned anywhere else so take it with a grain of salt, I just thought it was worth noting here.

 

[Melanie]

Does anyone think it is strange that there was a midnight phone call? I never call anyone after 8 p.m., but that is just me.

I never thought of that. We have family/friends in the UK, so our phone rings at all hours (Also, my SIL is in South Africa). With the accident on Monday, I wouldn't be suprised to see phone calls at late hours to make sure Rebecca was okay. I'm sure the family was worried sick

Just throwing that out there -- in light of all the odd circumstances in this case.

Mel

 

[MsFacetious]

Does anyone think it is strange that there was a midnight phone call? I never call anyone after 8 p.m., but that is just me.

Maybe the sister worked nights or something? Because it would have been Midnight Rebecca's time but 2AM for the sister.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4377441...go_ca/t/new-details-coronado-mansion-mystery/

 

[Melanie]

Sorry, Mel, my fault. I think the comment was indicating during Max's accident and that Dina was there - I haven't sen that mentioned anywhere else so take it with a grain of salt, I just thought it was worth noting here.

No worries - you were right! It's hard to keep track of 1 tragic incident in a home, let alone 2, on 2 separate days.

A 13-year-old girl called for help following the boy's fall. The teen, Zahau and [the boy] were the only ones in the residence at the time.

So it looks like G. Shacknai made the call. But where was Rebecca at the time of the fall? What did G witness?

I hope now that this is an open investigation we'll hear more in the days to come.

Hugs,

Mel

 

[JoeFromLB]

the staircase at the mansion (2005 photo)

(photo at this link:
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15075598/coronado-mansion-death?clienttype=printable)

 

[time]

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jul/18/death-of-shacknai-boy-sparks-investigation/

Death of Shacknai boy sparks investigation

July 18, 2011

CORONADO — Law enforcement officials on Monday said they have launched an investigation into the death of 6-year-old Max Shacknai, who died over the weekend from a recent fall at the same Coronado mansion where a woman's body was found hanging.

Ack ... link doesn't work for me and I can't find this story by searching. Is it just me?

 

[gxm]

Yep, hink-o-meter off the charts regarding this sad mess.

Yep, the hinky goes to 11. Perhaps even 12.

 

[JoeFromLB]

I don't know if this has been posted yet:

http://www.cbs8.com/story/15075598/coronado-mansion-death?clienttype=printable

Max's mother, psychologist Dr. Dina Shacknai, owns a summer house down the road from the Spreckels Mansion.

Dina and Jonah Shacknai were divorced in 2008. Friends say they were both at Max's bedside at the time of Zahau's mysterious death.

 

[anyoldtime48]

Ack ... link doesn't work for me and I can't find this story by searching. Is it just me?

Works fine for me. You might try just going to the signonsandiego.com home page. Link is underneath the photo, headline and lead paragraph about the detective and her daughter who were murdered.

Death of Shacknai boy sparks investigation

 

[time]

I don't know if this has been posted yet:

http://www.cbs8.com/story/15075598/coronado-mansion-death?clienttype=printable

Max's mother, psychologist Dr. Dina Shacknai, owns a summer house down the road from the Spreckels Mansion.

Dina and Jonah Shacknai were divorced in 2008. Friends say they were both at Max's bedside at the time of Zahau's mysterious death.

I thought I read earlier that her house is only 2 blocks away? And, that the hospital was actually extremely close also.

 

[JoeFromLB]

I thought I read earlier that her house is only 2 blocks away? And, that the hospital was actually extremely close also.

Something is bothering me...how would the Shacknai's "friends" know when Rebecca died? I don't believe the time of death has been released by the coroner yet.

 

[time]

Works fine for me. You might try just going to the signonsandiego.com home page. Link is underneath the photo, headline and lead paragraph about the detective and her daughter who were murdered.

Death of Shacknai boy sparks investigation

Thanks it's showing up now, maybe they were down temporarily

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jul/18/death-of-shacknai-boy-sparks-investigation/

 

[Linda7NJ]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/07/mystery-surrounds-deaths-at-spreckels-mansion-.html

On Sunday, the owner of the mansion, drug company executive Jonah Shacknai, announced his 6-year-old son, Max, died from a fall suffered Monday, July 11.
The mansion was the site of the still-unexplained death of the Shacknai's girlfriend. Rebecca Nalepa, was found dead in the courtyard of the 27-room estate two days after Max Shacknai was taken to the hospital.
Her body was discovered hanging from a balcony, her hands and feet bound, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, which has said her death may have been a suicide.

Very very strange story....more at link above

 

[Melanie]

I thought I read earlier that her house is only 2 blocks away? And, that the hospital was actually extremely close also.

The hospital they took Maxie to was off the island - meaning they didn't take him to the main hosptial on Coronado (Sharp Hospital). Instead he went to Rady's Children Hospital - which is about 30 minutes away (not counting bridge traffic).

The only way in/out of Coronado is the Bay Bridge or by ferry/helicopter.

North Central City (Main Campus)
3020 Children's Way
San Diego, CA 92123

Rady is the main children's hospital in San Diego (and a good one at that).

Mel