Advertisement

The truth behind the death of sisters found duct-taped together in river


Two Saudi Arabian sisters, whose bound bodies were found mysteriously duct taped together when they washed up in a New York river, took their own lives, an investigation has found.

The medical examiner on Tuesday said 16-year-old Tala Farea and 23-year-old Rotana Farea “bound themselves together before descending into the Hudson River” on October 24. The cause of death was drowning.

Their fully clothed bodies were discovered near the river, two months after they were last seen in Fairfax, Virginia, where they had been living in a shelter amid allegations that they were abused at home.

Police say the sisters told people they would “rather inflict harm on themselves” then return to Saudi Arabia.

Rotana and Tala Farea's fully clothed bodies were found bound together when they washed up on the banks of New York City's Hudson River waterfront.
Rotana and Tala Farea’s fully-clothed bodies were found bound together when they washed up on the banks of New York City’s Hudson River waterfront. Image: AP via NYPD

Investigators say the sisters travelled from Virginia where they were reported missing and stayed at multiple high-end hotels, ate out regularly and went shopping in the days before they died.

“There’s a strong possibility here that a credit card maxed out, that money was running out,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea said.

A witness told police he saw them praying near the river before their bodies were found October 24.

“Today, my office determined that the death of the Farea sisters was the result of suicide, in which the young women bound themselves together before descending into the Hudson River,” Chief Medical Examiner Dr Barbara Sampson said in a statement.

The sisters’ fully clothed bodies washed up on the bank of the Hudson River in October 2018. Image: Getty (file image)
The sisters’ fully clothed bodies washed up on the bank of the Hudson River in October 2018. Image: Getty (file image)

Their deaths shined a light on the secretive and risky journeys Saudi women take to flee their homes in the kingdom and abroad.

Police said the sisters had reported they were the subjects of abuse, and in December of 2017, they were placed in a domestic violence-type shelter in Virginia.

Their family had not seen them since November 30, 2017.

Stay up to date with the latest news with Yahoo7’s daily newsletter. Sign up here.