Possible suspect for NYC mom missing in Turkey

A view of the street with the hostel, in yellow at the end-left, where Sarai Sierra, a New York City woman, 33, was staying in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. / AP Photo

ANKARA, Turkey Turkish police on Wednesday were trying to trace a contact who apparently corresponded with a New York City woman through social networking sites before she went missing, an official said.

Undated photo of Sarai Sierra

/ Facebook

Sarai Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two from Staten Island, N.Y., has been missing since Jan. 21 when she was supposed to return home from a solo vacation in Istanbul. Police there have set up a special unit to find her.

A senior police official told The Associated Press that Sierra had exchanged messages with a person before she disappeared and police were now trying to trace the man or woman he described as a possible suspect in her disappearance.

The official said Sierra "presumably met" the person after she arrived in Istanbul. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government rules that bar civil servants from speaking to journalists without prior authorization.

The official, however, denied several Turkish media reports - that police were searching for an unknown man caught following Sierra on security camera footage; that Sierra had spent some US$12,000 during her stay in Istanbul; and that a narcotics team had searched her hostel room on suspicion that she might be a drug courier. "It's all made-up," he said.

• Sarai Sierra appears in shopping mall security video at cafe
• Istanbul police start search for missing NYC mom

Sierra arrived in Istanbul on Jan. 7 and had been in regular contact with friends and family back in the United States. Before she went missing, Sierra told family members that she planned to take some photographs at Galata Bridge, a well-known tourist destination about 2 kilometers away from her hostel. She was supposed to begin traveling home on Jan. 21, but never checked into her flight back to New York.

Police have said Sierra made an excursion to Amsterdam, Netherlands, from Istanbul on Jan. 15 and travelled on to Munich, Germany, on Jan. 16 before returning to Istanbul on Jan. 19, WCBS in New York reports. Police were trying to determine the reason for her visit to the European cities.

Her husband, Steven, and brother, David Jimenez, travelled to Istanbul to help in the search and were interviewed by the Istanbul police Tuesday. The two left the police headquarters after some seven hours and were seen carrying a suitcase, which the state-run Anadolu Agency said belonged to Sierra.

Sierra's belongings, including her passport, were found in her hostel room.

Jimenez did not immediately respond to questions sent by email or to an interview request.

Police have released CCTV camera footage showing Sierra alone, eating in the food court of a shopping mall and walking along a main shopping street near her hostel. She is dressed in jeans, a brown leather jacket and a winter hat.

Sierra had planned to go on the trip with a friend but ended up going by herself when the friend couldn't make it. She was looking forward to exploring her hobby of photography, on her first trip outside of the United States, her family said.

Staten Island Rep. Michael Grimm is assisting in the case.

[lunarrays]

This is identical to one of many "locked up abroad" episodes. You can't put Istanbul and Amsterdam in the same sentence without including the word hashish. Who stays in a cheap hostel and then dishes out almost $1,000 for a few days trip to Amsterdam and Munich. Photography was a hobby, so who pursues a hobby all the way to Istanbul...is there not enough stuff to photograph in the U.S., and why go to Istanbul for 2 weeks to take pictures, ALONE. First trip out of U.S. and chose Istanbul of all places. Why would any woman all alone in a strange place decide to meet with a MAN she does not know..

[usbworks]

Here's the latest on Jan 31st from Turkey:

Three days after arriving in Istanbul, Sarai leaves Istanbul and goes to Amsterdam for one night and Munich for three nights for "photo exhibits". This is the reason provided by her husband. She returns to Istanbul for two nights and moves her flight so that she will return home three days earlier than originally planned.

The amateur photographer spends a total of 3 nights in Istanbul, 1 night in Amsterdam, 3 nights in Munich and 2 more nights back in Istanbul before disappearing on the day of her planned return to Newark.

On the day of her return, Jan 21st at 11:00 AM, Sarai messages to a Turk named Taylan, "I am almost across the Galata Tower. Will you come?" After waiting at a cafe until 11:33 AM, she message him again, "I'm leaving, if you want to reach me, call me". At 12:45 PM, she receives a message from Taylan, "I'll come over there. I'm assuming that you have wireless."

The latest video of Sarai is at 12:01 PM on the 21st as she's walking from the Galata Tower.

The Turkish FBI have fully identified Taylan and are now searching for him.

Unsubstantiated rumors being reported in the Turkish press:

#1] Sarai's total expenses exceeded $10,000.
#2] A 30ish man is seen following her in the videos.

[CURIOUSINNYC]

MADAME SARAI DOESNT SEEM TO BE THAT NAIVE AS WE THINK. SHE SUPPOSE TO BE TRAVELING FOR THE FIRST TIME..SHE LOOKS TOO CONFIDENT, COOL AND SEEMS TO KNOW HER WHEARABOUTS QUITE EASILY. HER TRAVEL TO AMSTERDAM AND MUNICH DONT SOUND GOOD EITHER. WHATS THE REASON TO TRAVEL SO SOON THERE AND RETURN?..AND WHY TRAVEL ON 2 DIFFERENT OCCASIONS. SHE DOESNT SEEM TO HAVE KNOWN TURKISH BY CHANCE..SO HOW WAS SHE ABLE TO MAKE ALL ARRANGEMENTS FOR HER SELF SO EASILY. WHY RENT A ROOM AT A HOSTEL?..SHE SEEMS TO BE ABLE TO AFFORD EVERYTHING. WHY NOT A HOTEL? 3WEEKS ON HER OWN..TO TAKE PICTURES OF BEAUTIFUL TURKEY..HEHEHE. WHY NOT AMSTERDAM AND MUNICH. THEY ARE ALSO LOVELY PLACES. FRIEND BACKS OUT ..VERY ODD. WHY DOESNT HER HUBBY OR FAMILY MEMBER JOIN HER ON THIS TRIP. HOW COME SHE CHANGES HER TRAVEL DATES??..SUDDENLY SHE REMEMBERS HOME. USUALLY U EXTEND A TRIP..NOT LESSEN A TRIP. IS SHE THROWING THE SCENT OFF?? FOR HER FAMILY..OR FOR SOMEONE SHE CROSSED. WHATS HER MOTIVE? THE STORY ABOUT HER STUFF TOO ISNT CONCREATE. ITS BEEN SAID THAT HER IPHONE AND IPAD ARE NOT THERE IN THE ROOM. SUDDENLY POLICE IS ABLE TO HAVE IT..AND ARE GOING THRU HER EQUIPMENT.
SHE SEEMS TO BE VERY SHADY. THIS WHOLE TRAVEL EPISODE IS WEIRD.

[CURIOUSINNYC]

LOLZ

[PepeRonnie]

Sounds like a spy case. She worked for some agency, did a run for them, things went wrong and they sent a cleaner after her. If the investigation leads to nowhere that's what happened

[Jesus_to_ground_control]

Not So Innocent

From Turkey to the Netherlands? Sounds like a drug delivery route to me.

[usbworks]

That would be very bad news. She's either dead or if she's found then will spend a very long time in a Turkish prison for drug trafficking. If her husband and brother helped arrange to make her the transporter, then they need to leave Turkey asap.

[Farang101]

HA! I have to laugh at that one NJFILM. Istanbul isn't one of the "most dangerous spots in the world" as a matter of fact it's rather safe. You're more likely to die in Chicago compared to Istanbul. I've been there on three separate trips and have found the citizens in Istanbul to be rather kind, helpful, and extremely polite. I find it rather strange that this woman managed to spend over $12,000 in two weeks when it was reported yesterday that she spent a grand total of 222 Euros on her hostel room for 2 weeks and that hostel IS A DUMP! Spending that amount in Turkey (and 4 days in Europe)is just ridiculous. This woman's husband is NYC public bus driver. That amount is probably 1/3 of his yearly salary. Hell, I rode a motorcycle across the entire country of Turkey in 2011 AND visited 2 Greek islands and spent less that $2,500 on 15 days of travel. Another strange thing to me is going all the way to Istanbul to photograph the Galata Bridge....are you freakin' kidding me? Istanbul has some of the most beautiful mosques on the planet that are hundreds of years old designed by some of the greatest architects in Muslim history and this woman goes to snap pics of the Galata Bridge? That's like going to China to take pics of McDonalds and Burger Kings.......This story just gets more bizarre by the day.

[usbworks]

The Turkish official quoted in the article above clearly denies that Sarai spent over $12,000. That appears to be a rumor that some Turkish papers published.

[usbworks]

Here's the latest from Turkey as reported in the newspaper Zaman:

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-305635-police-searching-for-man-in-missing-american-woman-case.html

The Istanbul Police Department is reportedly looking for a man named Taylan, who was supposed to meet up with New Yorker Sarai Sierra, who went missing last week in Istanbul, to find answers about the mysterious disappearance of the American woman.

Police found out after examining Sierra's iPad that the New Yorker was due to meet with a man named Taylan nearby the Galata Tower on Jan. 20, the day she went missing. Police said Sierra had chatted with Taylan over Gmail and agreed to meet him on Jan. 20. Police are now examining camera footage that covers the area where Sierra and Taylan were expected to meet to decide whether the meeting took place.

Police are working on ascertaining Taylan's identity.

Police are now examining video footage taken from 500 security cameras that cover the areas.

[usbworks]

There are 3 competing theories to explain Sarai's disappearance:

#1] Taken Theory - This seems popular with people who just viewed Liam Neeson single handedly rescuing his daughter from human traffickers. Taken 2 was filmed in Istanbul close to the hostel that Sarai rented for 2 weeks. The problem is that the only human trafficking in Turkey is actually smuggling people from third world countries into Greece and the European Union. Sarai may be beautiful but no sex trafficker is going to waste his time on a 33 year old American woman with two kids. There are plenty of stupid 16 year olds. So this theory is highly improbable.

#2] Sleeping With The Enemy Theory - Perhaps Sarai planned this trip to travel alone to Istanbul in the middle of winter to escape from an abusive relationship. Many women want to divorce their husbands but are afraid that he will respond violently. This is a very common cause of murder of women in the US and Turkey. In this situation, Sarai has to have help to stay hidden in Istanbul until her husband gives up. Perhaps the trip to Amsterdam and Munich were a rendezvous to get help from some Turks living there. I like this theory because it means that she is still alive and looking for happiness. Still, it requires Sarai to give up her kids.

#3] Midnight Express Theory - The amateur photographer takes a gig as an amateur drug mule. The idea is that the Sierra's signed up Sarai to carry a package of drugs from Istanbul to Amsterdam. She made the delivery and returned to Istanbul to get paid. She even moved her return flight up three days, but something went wrong. Instead of getting money, she got a bullet. I hope that this theory is wrong but have to admit that it fits all of the facts well.

[njfilm]

So on her first vacation outside the US, this woman decides to visit one of the most dangerous spots in the world. Is it only Americans who are this naive?

[usbworks]

The most dangerous spots in the world?

1] Classroom in Sandy Hook Elementary.

2] Movie theater in Aurora, Colorado.

3] Shopping Mall in Clackamas, Oregon.

But you're right that only Americans are so naive. Only Americans naively believe that more guns will make us more safe.

[Borninasia]

What? Istanbul one of the most dangerous spots in the world?? You meant to say New Jersey or New York. I've been to Istanbul, and let me tell you - it is one of the safest places in Europe.