The night and early morning when the Venezuelan-American tourist, Carla Stefaniak, was killed all the rooms in the Escazú hotel/Airbnb, almost all the rooms were occupied, according to investigators of the Organismo de Investigacion Judicial (OIJ).
The OIJ agents said they have talked to the Uber driver, the two guards at the property, a maid, the hotel owners, and several guests staying at the property the night of November 27, 2018, and morning of November 28, 2018, when Stefaniak was murdered.
On April 1, have, the OIJ made a video of the reconstruction of the crime based on the facts they have so far, with the presence of prosecutors and lawyers of the family of Carla Stefaniak.
The group also inspected the room where the young woman was staying. However, investigators found traces of fluids in room 10, located only short distance from where the body was found days later.
Who was staying in that room at the time? For the moment OIJ investigators and the family lawyers are keeping that information secret so as not to impede the ongoing investigation.
So far, a security guard of Nicaraguan nationality with the surname Espinoza is the only suspect. He is in preventive detention (remand).
However, investigators are not discarding the involvement of the Uber driver who spent some time with Carla after she returned her rental car and returned to the Escazu hotel. The documentation in the case reveals they visited several areas of San Jose.
Also, there are suspicions about the person cleaning lady given that the room where Carla is believed to have been murdered was cleaned several times with vinegar, even, was rented the after the finding of the body.
The victim’s family also insists on investigating the hotel owners who according to the investigations were in the property the night of Carla’s death.
Still missing are test results of clothing and the body. For example, the preliminary report found semen in one of his garments, but DNA results have not been made public. In addition, there was blood under the nails of the young woman’s hands, but it is also unclear if it corresponds to fluids of the main suspect.
In total, the family’s lawyers consider that there could be up to 7 people suspected of the crime and expect results soon from the OIJ and the Fiscalía (Prosecutor’s Office).
Last week, Carla’s father, Carlos Caicedo, told La Teja: “The floor was cleaned three times with vinegar and chlorine, with the intention of hiding the crime. The doctor (pathologist) told me that she had six days in a state of decomposition, there were some very strong odors. Describing what I saw is very difficult … (breathes deeply) I looked at her and I swore to her that I was going to fight for justice … and I’m doing it!”.
In the interview, Carlos said he chose to have his daugther’s remains cremated, he could not bear to have her mother see her that way.
