Horrors of Eastern LOVE: How Sheikhs and Princes punished their WIVES.

…

Appeals to the Russian consulate in the UAE were unsuccessful.

No official information about problems with Russian citizens had been received.

Her parents began searching through social networks and turned to acquaintances with connections in the region, but they were unable to obtain any information about Alexandra’s whereabouts.

The only channel of communication remained Alexandra’s friend, a student from the same faculty with whom the girl occasionally corresponded via messenger.

In June, she received several voice messages from Alexandra, which were the last signs of life from her.

In these recordings, the girl’s voice sounded depressed and anxious.

In the first message, Alexandra said that her husband spent most of the day at the mosque and hardly communicated with her at home.

The girl complained of loneliness and strict restrictions on her movement around the house.

She mentioned that the maids avoided contact with her and were clearly afraid to say anything.

Alexandra said that she was not allowed to leave her room without a headscarf and appropriate clothing.

In the second voice message recorded a few days later, Alexandra described a strange smell of meat that was constantly present in the house.

She noted that all the kitchen knives had disappeared from the tables and drawers, which she found unusual.

The girl expressed growing concern about changes in her husband’s behavior and the atmosphere in the house.

The last voice message was sent on June 14th.

In it, Alexandra said in a broken voice that the situation was becoming unbearable.

She mentioned physical punishment for breaking the rules and asked her friend to find a way to contact her parents.

The girl said she felt her life was in danger but could not leave the house on her own.

The recording cut off in the middle of a sentence.

After sending her last voice message, Alexandra Krysova disappeared from all communication channels.

Her friend tried to call and text her, but the messages remained unread.

The girl’s phone showed offline status in messengers.

8 days of complete silence ensued in Alcasimi’s house, ending with the screams of a Filipino maid at the kitchen window.

The events of June 20th unfolded rapidly.

At around 2 pm local time, the residential complex’s security received an emergency call from one of the houses.

The dispatcher recorded a message that a woman was screaming and banging on the window demanding help.

The team on duty arrived at the scene 7 minutes later and found the Filipino maid in a state of extreme agitation in front of the first floor kitchen window.

The woman named Maria Santos had been working in the Alcasimi house for about a year cleaning the living quarters.

That day, she was supposed to do a thorough cleaning of the kitchen, but she did not have the key to the room.

The maid tried to knock on the door, but got no response.

Looking through the kitchen window, she saw plastic containers on the floor with contents that she initially mistook for meat products for freezing.

Upon closer inspection, Maria realized that she was looking at human body parts.

The containers held two arms, one leg from the knee to the foot, and part of a torso without a head.

Everything was neatly packed and labeled with stickers in Arabic indicating that it was kosher frozen food.

Next to the containers was an industrial meat grinder with remnants of biological tissue.

The security guards called the police and an ambulance.

The first group of law enforcement officers arrived 20 minutes later and immediately cordoned off the villa.

The kitchen was declared a crime scene and closed for detailed investigation.

Three Filipino maids and Abdulhaleim bin Sahed Alcasami himself were in the house calmly reading the Quran in the living room.

During his arrest, the 72-year-old man did not resist and remained completely calm.

He answered the police’s questions about what was happening in the kitchen in mono syllables, referring to his religious duties to cleanse the house of impurity.

Alcasimi was taken to the Russ Alka police station for further questioning.

A preliminary examination of the crime scene revealed many details indicating systematic violence.

In the kitchen freezer, investigators found additional body parts.

long dark hair, a lower jaw with teeth, and pieces of fabric with a name embroidered in Latin letters.

Forensic tests confirmed that the hair belonged to a European woman in her 20s.

Alexandra’s personal belongings were found in her bedroom, clothes, cosmetics, Arabic language study materials, and a notebook with notes on local traditions.

The wardrobe contained traditional women’s dresses and headscarves purchased after she moved to the UAE.

On the dressing table were Russian educational documents and a medical certificate for obtaining a visa.

A search of Alcasimi’s office yielded more disturbing findings.

In the desk was a folder with marriage documents, including a copy of the Nika name, an Islamic marriage certificate.

There was also Alexandra’s confiscated Russian passport and a certificate of change of visa status which had never been submitted to the relevant authorities.

Investigators paid particular attention to a diary written in Arabic by Alcasimi.

It contained detailed notes on his wife’s behavior and the disciplinary measures applied to her.

The entries began in January 2023 and documented the progressive tightening of punishments for various violations of the established rules.

The first entries concerned relatively mild remarks, being late for prayer, incorrect reading of the Quran, insufficiently modest clothing in the presence of maids.

Punishments were limited to deprivation of food for several hours, or a ban on leaving the room.

Gradually, the list of violations expanded to include attempts to contact relatives without permission, expressions of dissatisfaction with living conditions, and questions about the return of documents.

By May, the entries had become more severe.

Alcasimi recorded the use of physical punishment.

Blows with a wooden stick on the palms for refusing to perform household duties, being chained in metal shackles for attempting to leave the assigned room without permission, and forced reading of religious texts for several hours at a time.

The last entries were dated mid June and mentioned his wife’s complete disobedience and the need to take drastic measures.

Alcasami wrote that the woman refused to recognize his authority as husband and head of the family which contradicted Islamic principles of family life.

He considered such behavior an insult to religious feelings and a threat to the spiritual purity of the home.

In the basement of the villa, there was a small room with metal rings in the walls and shackles on chains.

The maids testified that Alexandra was periodically locked in this room for several days without food or water as punishment for serious misdemeanors.

In the room, investigators found traces of blood on the floor and walls, as well as scratches on metal surfaces left by fingernails.

The home’s video surveillance system included cameras in all living areas, including Alexandra’s bedroom and the kitchen.

Alcasimi explained this was necessary to monitor compliance with religious rules and family discipline.

The camera recordings from the last 2 weeks before the incident had been completely deleted, but technical expertise partially restored some fragments.

The restored footage captured a scene in the kitchen where Alcasimi forced Alexandra to perform humiliating acts.

The girl was forced to crawl on the floor and ask for forgiveness for disobeying her husband.

Other footage shows the man beating her on the back and legs with a leather belt, demanding that she repeat religious formulas in Arabic.

A medical examination of the remains confirmed the victim’s identity through dental records and DNA samples provided by relatives in Russia.

A forensic medical expert determined that death was caused by asphixxiation due to compression of the neck with a leather belt.

Injuries to the body indicated prolonged physical abuse, including multiple hematomas, broken ribs, and damage to internal organs.

The condition of the victim’s hands attracted particular attention from the experts.

Her fingernails had been completely torn off, and her fingers had deep cuts and burns.

These injuries had been inflicted shortly before her death and were evidence of torture.

Tissue analysis revealed the presence of dasipam, a sedative that could have been used to suppress the victim’s resistance.

Toxicological testing also revealed traces of other medications that had not been prescribed to the girl by doctors.

Residues of potent psychotropic substances were found in her body which could cause disorientation and suppress valitional functions.

This indicated the possible systematic use of chemical behavior control.

The autopsy showed that some internal organs had been partially removed after death.

In particular, part of the liver was missing and other abdominal organs were damaged.

The nature of the injuries indicated the use of professional meat cutting tools which was consistent with Alcasimi’s work in the meat processing industry.

Abdulhaleim bin Sarid Al-Cassimi was questioned in the presence of an interpreter and a lawyer appointed by the suspect’s family.

The 72-year-old man appeared completely calm and answered the investigator’s questions without showing any signs of emotional distress.

His testimony was recorded in Arabic and then translated into English for the record.

When asked directly about his wife’s death, Alcasimi answered in the affirmative, but refused to admit that it was a crime.

According to him, he had every right to punish his wife for disobeying religious precepts and family traditions.

The man claimed that he had acted within the framework of Islamic law and fulfilled his duties as head of the family to maintain order in the home.

The details of Alexandra’s last days, as recounted by Al Casimi, were striking in their insensitivity.

According to him, his wife constantly violated the established rules of conduct, refused to study the Quran, and showed disrespect to her husband.

She tried to secretly contact relatives in Russia, and expressed a desire to return home, which he considered a betrayal of her marital obligations.

The decisive conflict occurred on June 18th when Alexandra openly declared her intention to leave the house and seek help from the Russian consulate.

Alcasimi regarded this as a final breach of marital fidelity and decided to apply the most severe punishment.

He lured his wife into the basement under the pretext of needing to discuss her behavior and there threw a leather belt around her neck.

According to the defendant’s testimony, Alexandra resisted and tried to free herself, but he held the belt until she stopped moving.

After her death, Alcasimi moved the body to the kitchen, where he kept the meat cutting tools he used in his business.

The man explained that he dismembered the corpse because he believed it was necessary to cleanse the house of impurity according to his understanding of religious norms.

The dismemberment process took several hours.

Alcasimi methodically cut up the body with an industrial meat grinder and sharp knives, placing the parts in labeled plastic containers for freezing.

He planned to completely dispose of the remains through the waste processing system at one of his factories.

He had already managed to remove and destroy the head and some organs before the crime was discovered.

The testimony of three Filipino maids who worked in the house confirmed the systematic nature of the violence against Alexandra.

Maria Santos, Rosa Fernandez, and Gloria Menddees gave detailed testimony about what they had observed over several months.

The women were afraid to intervene because of threats of dismissal and deportation, but they secretly sympathized with the young Russian wife.

According to the maids, Alexandra often spent days in confinement without food or water.

Alcasimi locked her in the basement in metal shackles for the slightest misdemeanors, mispronouncing Arabic words, slow performance of household duties, attempts to talk to the servants without permission.

The girl was visibly losing weight and becoming increasingly withdrawn and frightened.

Particularly severe punishments followed Alexandra’s attempts to contact the outside world.

Alcasimi controlled all her communications and regularly checked her phone for unauthorized calls or messages.

When he discovered violations, the punishment included beating her palms with a wooden stick and forcing her to read religious texts for hours in an uncomfortable position.

Maid Rosa Fernandez recounted how Alexandra had repeatedly asked her for help in recent weeks.

The girl begged her to find a way to send a message to the Russian consulate or contact her family in Russia.

She said she feared for her life and felt that her husband was planning to harm her seriously.

The maid wanted to help but was afraid of losing her job and being punished.

The house was under strict control which made it virtually impossible to escape or seek help.

All the windows were barred, the doors were locked with electronic locks, and the property was guarded around the clock.

Alexandra had no access to money, documents, or means of communication without her husband’s supervision.

Even trips to the toilet and shower were monitored and limited in time.

The psychological pressure was compounded by physical exhaustion.

Alexandra was given minimal food, often forced to fast under religious pretexts and compelled to perform exhausting household chores.

She was forced to wash clothes by hand, scrub the floors on her knees, and perform other humiliating tasks as part of the process of teaching her obedience.

The girl was denied medical care, even when she suffered serious injuries.

Maid saw Alexandra suffering from infections caused by unsanitary conditions in the basement.

She developed skin diseases, but Alcasimi considered illness to be punishment for sins and refused to seek medical attention.

He prescribed treatment with prayers and readings from the Quran.

Religious justification for violence played a central role in Alcasimi’s worldview.

He considered himself a true believer in Islam who was following divine instructions on how to run a family.

In his view, a wife had to be totally submissive to her husband as Allah’s representative on earth.

Any resistance was seen as blasphemy that needed to be severely punished.

The investigation established that the online dating platform through which Alexandra and Alcasimi met did not conduct sufficient user verification.

The man provided false information about his marital status and character.

In reality, he had been married three times, and all his previous marriages had ended with his wives disappearing under mysterious circumstances.

Alcasimi’s first wife, a Filipino woman named Lords Castillo, disappeared in 2016, 8 months after the wedding.

Officially, she was declared to have left the country voluntarily, but her relatives claimed that she never contacted them after her disappearance.

His second wife, Fatima Ahmed, a Pakistani woman, disappeared in 2019 under similar circumstances.

The investigation into these earlier cases was reopened after Alcasimi’s arrest.

The police discovered that in both cases, the women had complained to friends about their husband’s abuse and expressed fear for their lives.

Their passports were also confiscated under the pretext of processing documents, and their last contacts with relatives ceased suddenly and without explanation.

A large-scale search was conducted on Alcasimi’s estate using special dogs and ground penetrating radar equipment.

Three areas of disturbed soil were found in the garden behind the house, which could indicate burials.

Exumation revealed human remains preliminarily identified as belonging to two women of Asian origin.

Additional evidence was found in the storage rooms of Alcasimi’s meat processing plants.

Workers confirmed that the owner periodically brought in additional biological waste for disposal in industrial furnaces.

He explained this as necessary to destroy expired products, but the amount of waste did not correspond to the volume of production.

An examination of financial documents showed that Alcasimi used online dating platforms as a way to attract victims to satisfy his sadistic tendencies.

He specifically sought out young educated women from other countries who were in a vulnerable position and easily manipulated by the prospect of a secure life in a wealthy Arab country.

The scheme was worked out in detail.

Alcasimi created an attractive image of a successful businessman and devout Muslim seeking a life partner to start a traditional family.

He promised his wives comfortable living conditions, the opportunity to study Islamic culture, and a religious education.

After the women moved to the UAE, he isolated them from the outside world and gradually increased his control and violence.

A psychiatric examination of Alcasimi revealed signs of antisocial personality disorder with sadistic traits, but found him sane at the time of the crimes.

The man was fully aware of the unlawful nature of his actions but considered himself entitled to dispose of his wife’s lives and deaths according to his perverted understanding of religious principles.

The trial of Abdulhaleim bin Sahed al- Kasimi was held in closed session by decision of the judicial authorities of Ras Al- Khima.

The official justification for the secrecy was the need to protect the dignity of the defendant’s family and prevent negative impact on the Emirates’s reputation.

Alexandra Krysovva’s relatives from Russia were denied participation in the trial on the pretext of lack of necessary documents and visa formalities.

The defense was based on the claim that the defendant was mentally incompetent and unable to control his actions due to scenile personality disorder.

Alcasimi’s lawyers presented the conclusions of private psychiatrists who diagnosed him with progressive dementia and religious hallucinations.

According to their version, the man did not understand the illegality of his actions and acted under the influence of morbid fantasies.

The Emirates religious council supported this version of the defense, stating that a true believer could not have committed such crimes in his right mind.

Representatives of the clergy claimed that Alcasimi’s actions contradicted the fundamentals of Islam and could only have been the result of mental illness.

This position allowed them to avoid accusations that the crimes were motivated by religious beliefs.

The court deemed the testimony of the maids unreliable due to their dependent position and possible interest in receiving compensation.

The defendant’s lawyers argued that the Filipino women could have distorted the facts under the influence of promises of financial rewards from the victim’s Russian relatives.

The court took these arguments into account when evaluating the evidence.

Examinations of the remains of Alcasimi’s previous wives did not provide conclusive results for additional charges.

The condition of the bone tissue did not allow the cause of death to be determined with certainty and the lack of documentary evidence of identity complicated identification.

The investigation was forced to focus solely on the case of Alexandra Krysova as the only one with sufficient evidence.

The prosecution sought the death penalty for premeditated murder with particular cruelty, but the defense insisted on a finding of insanity and referral for compulsory treatment.

The court proceedings lasted several weeks with religious authorities and medical experts participating.

The position of influential members of the Emirates ruling family who advocated for the most lenient sentence possible played a decisive role.

The court’s final decision was a compromise between the demands of justice and the need to preserve the reputation of the local elite.

Abdulhaleim bin Sahed al- Kasimi was found guilty of unintentional manslaughter due to mental disorder.

The court ordered him to undergo compulsory treatment at a private psychiatric clinic in Ajman with a review of the case in 5 years.

This sentence caused outrage among Russia and human rights organizations.

But official protests did not lead to a review of the decision.

The UAE authorities stated that the sentence was in accordance with local law and took into account all the circumstances of the case.

Russia’s diplomatic attempts to secure a harsher punishment for the killer were met with formal excuses about the independence of the Emirates judicial system.

Alexandra Krysovva’s parents received official notification of their daughter’s death only 2 months after the verdict was handed down.

The document stated that the girl had died as a result of a domestic tragedy in the family and had been buried according to local traditions.

Details of the crime and the trial were not disclosed on the pretext of protecting private information.

Attempts by relatives to obtain the body for burial in Russia were rejected by local authorities.

The official justification was the need to observe Islamic burial rituals and the impossibility of exumation after religious rights had been performed.

In reality, Alexandra’s remains were cremated without the family’s consent, and her ashes were scattered in the desert outside the city.

Alexandra Krysovva’s Russian passport was destroyed by order of the local authorities as a document belonging to a person who had converted to Islam and taken a new name after marriage.

The Russian consulate received notification that the citizen had voluntarily renounced her Russian citizenship in favor of the status of wife of a UAE citizen which precluded further claims by the Russian side.

The media in the UAE received tacit instructions not to cover the Alcasimi case in order to avoid damaging the region’s tourist appeal.

Local journalists who attempted to investigate the circumstances of the crimef faced obstacles in obtaining information and pressure from the authorities.

Several publications and independent media outlets were quickly removed at the request of the sensors.

International human rights organizations tried to draw attention to the case as an example of systemic discrimination against women in some Arab countries.

However, their efforts did not receive widespread attention due to the geopolitical interests of Western countries in maintaining good relations with the UAE.

Economic ties proved to be more important than protecting human rights and justice for victims of crime.

The private psychiatric clinic in Ajan where Alcasimi was treated belonged to his distant relatives and provided the most comfortable conditions possible.

The patient lived in a separate cottage on the grounds of the medical center with personal staff and the ability to receive visitors.

The treatment regime was more like a respectable vacation than forced hospitalization.

Medical reports on Alcasimi’s condition were formal and contained standard phrases about the gradual improvement of the patients mental health.

The clinic’s doctors regularly reported to the judicial authorities on the progress of the treatment and expressed optimistic predictions about the possibility of early release.

None of the independent specialists were given access to examine the patient.

2 years after the start of treatment, Alcasimi’s condition was reviewed by a medical commission which concluded that he had made a full recovery and posed no danger to society.

The man was discharged from the clinic with recommendations to continue outpatient observation and undergo regular preventive examinations.

In fact, he was given complete freedom of action and the opportunity to return to his normal life.

After his discharge, Alcasimi returned to managing his businesses and resumed his activity on online dating platforms under new names.

Law enforcement agencies did not monitor him in any way, and his criminal record was formally expuned under an amnesty for persons suffering from mental disorders.

The public was not informed about the killer’s release and return to normal life.

The case of Alexandra Krypsova is one of many examples of how corruption, religious fanaticism, and legal irresponsibility can lead to impunity for the most brutal crimes.

A young Russian student who dreamed of studying Eastern culture and starting a family became a victim of a system that values the reputation of influential families above human life and justice.

When firefighters broke down the door of a mansion in Virginia, they found two charred bodies on the second floor.

But the real nightmare began when a detective noticed a strange crack in the floor of the wine celler.

Behind it was a second basement where five women were being held in chains.

Shik Sahed al- Mahadi flew to the United States at the end of August 2022.

The 39year-old member of Dubai’s ruling family rarely appeared in the Western Press.

Although his fortune was estimated at around $400 million, he spent most of his time between the Emirates and London where he owned several properties through offshore companies.

He did not visit America often.

He was last seen in Miami 3 years ago at a yacht show.

This time, his plane landed at a private terminal at Dulles airport near Washington.

He was accompanied by Jana Kovchuk, a 26-year-old model from Kiev.

They had met 6 months earlier at a party in Monte Carlo organized by a mutual acquaintance, a Russian businessman involved in real estate in Europe.

Jana worked for a mid-level modeling agency, modeled for clothing cataloges, and occasionally participated in shows at Milan Fashion Week.

Her career was not spectacular, but it provided enough to travel and maintain the lifestyle she had dreamed of back in her native Kiev.

After meeting Sed, her life changed.

He began inviting her to private events, paying for her flights, and giving her jewelry.

Jana understood that their relationship had no future in the traditional sense.

The shake was married and had three children, but she did not object to this arrangement.

Money, attention, luxury, all this compensated for the lack of official status.

Said bought an estate in Northern Virginia 2 years before his arrival, but he hardly ever visited it.

The property was registered to a shell company registered in Delaware.

The house stood on 12 acres of land surrounded by forest.

The nearest neighbors lived a kilometer away.

It was an old colonialstyle mansion built in the 1970s with white columns at the entrance and a long driveway.

Inside, everything looked solid but unpretentious.

Wood paneling on the walls, a fireplace in the living room, a spacious kitchen with marble countertops.

Sed rarely explained why he needed this house.

He told his friends that he wanted a place for privacy where no one would ask questions.

In the Emirates, he was always being watched by relatives, business partners, journalists.

Here, he could do whatever he wanted.

The first few days after their arrival were quiet.

Said and hardly left the house.

He worked remotely, calling partners, checking financial reports, discussing some land deals in Abu Dhabi.

Jana sunbathed by the pool, leafed through magazines, and posted photos on social media.

She didn’t ask any unnecessary questions.

Sometimes Sed would leave for a few hours, saying he was meeting with lawyers or dealing with some real estate issues.

Jana stayed alone, watched TV series, and ordered food through apps.

She didn’t know that there was a hidden room in the basement of the mansion under the wine celler, and she didn’t know that someone was there.

The fire started on the evening of September 12th.

Neighbors noticed smoke around 11 pm One of them called 911, but the house was far from the road, and it took firefighters 20 minutes to get there.

When they arrived, the second floor was already engulfed in flames.

The fire was coming from a bedroom in the east wing.

The fire chief immediately realized that there might be people inside.

There were two cars in the driveway, a rented SUV, and a sedan.

The firefighters tried to get in through the front door, but it was locked from the inside.

They had to break it down with a battering ram.

The smoke inside was so thick that they could hardly see anything.

One of the firefighters climbed the stairs to the second floor, feeling his way.

In the bedroom, he stumbled upon a body.

A woman was lying on the floor next to the bed with a man next to her.

Both were dead.

The fire had damaged their faces, making it impossible to identify them immediately.

The bodies were taken outside.

By this time, the Faulier County police and investigators from the sheriff’s office had arrived.

One of the detectives, Mark Lawson, immediately noticed some strange details.

First, the bedroom door was closed from the outside, not locked, but tightly shut, which is unusual for a fire that starts inside a room.

Second, there was an overturned canister on the floor next to the bed.

Judging by the smell, it contained gasoline.

An examination would later confirm that the liquid had been spilled on the carpet and set on fire.

This was no accident.

Someone wanted these two to burn.

Lawson began his inspection of the house.

Everything on the first floor looked relatively normal.

No signs of a struggle.

Furniture in its place, dishes in the sink.

There were fresh groceries in the refrigerator and glasses with wine residue on the table.

It seemed like the evening had started normally.

The detective went down to the basement.

There was a laundry room, a small storage room, and a wine celler.

A room with wooden shelves lined with bottles.

Lawson walked along the shelves, checking for anything unusual, and he noticed something.

One of the shelves was slightly tilted, as if it had been moved recently.

He tried to pull it, and it gave way.

Behind it was a narrow door built into the wall.

It was not locked.

Lawson opened it and saw a staircase leading down to the second basement.

He went down holding a flashlight.

Downstairs, there was a smell of dampness and something else, a sour, unpleasant smell of unwashed bodies.

The room was small, about 15x 10 m with a low ceiling and concrete walls.

In the corner stood a mattress, next to it, a plastic bucket.

A metal pipe ran along the wall to which chains were attached.

And on these chains sat women, five women, all naked, all in handcuffs.

Lawson called for backup.

A few minutes later, two more police officers and a paramedic came down to the basement.

The women were exhausted.

Some of them could barely stand.

They were immediately freed from their chains and carried upstairs.

One of them was crying.

Another was silent, staring at a single point.

The third repeated something in broken English.

Please don’t send me back.

Please.

The fourth and fifth seemed to be in a semic-conscious state and had to be carried.

All of them were taken to the hospital.

An examination established that the women had been held in the basement for several days to several weeks.

All of them had signs of beatings, abrasions on their wrists and ankles from handcuffs, and signs of dehydration.

Doctors also found signs of sexual assault on three of them.

One of the women, 24-year-old Marina, told investigators that she had been brought there 3 weeks ago.

She is from Muldova and came to the US on a tourist visa hoping to find work.

In Washington, she responded to an advertisement for a housekeeper position.

She was given an appointment at a cafe where she was met by a tall bearded man with an accent.

He said the job was in a country house and paid well.

Marina agreed.

The man drove her to the mansion, took her inside, and then forced her down to the basement.

Two other women were already there.

He chained Marina up and told her she would work when the time came.

She hardly saw him again.

Food was brought once a day, usually bread, canned goods, sometimes fruit.

Water was provided in plastic bottles.

Another woman, 28-year-old Oxana from Ukraine, told a similar story.

She too was lured with the promise of work.

She arrived in the US 6 months ago, lived in New York, and worked part-time as a waitress.

She didn’t have enough money and was looking for something more stable.

She found an ad in a Russian-speaking group on social media.

A caregiver was needed for an elderly person in Virginia.

Oxana contacted the employer and they agreed to meet.

She was met by the same man who later brought her to the mansion.

By the time Oxana realized she had fallen into a trap, it was too late.

He was stronger than her and had a gun.

She tried to scream, but he hit her in the face and dragged her into the basement.

She spent 11 days there.

The other three women hardly spoke.

One of them did not know English at all and communicated through an interpreter.

She came from Romania and her story was vague.

Something about an agency that promised work in Europe.

Then she was resold and ended up in America.

The second was from the Philippines.

The third from Colombia.

They all ended up here through different intermediaries, but the pattern was the same.

A promise of work, a meeting with a man who drove them to the mansion and confinement in the basement.

The police began searching for this man.

The description matched.

Tall, about 40 years old, bearded, dark-skinned, with an accent.

Surveillance cameras at a nearby store recorded a car that regularly visited the mansion, a dark van with no identifying marks.

The license plate number was identified.

The car was registered to a certain Ahmed Sullean, a 38-year-old Jordanian citizen living in Washington.

The police went to his address, but the apartment was empty.

Neighbors said they hadn’t seen him for several days.

No one answered his phone.

Meanwhile, the identities of the victims were established through fingerprints and dental records.

The man was Sahed al- Mahadi, a shake from Dubai, a millionaire and member of the ruling family.

The woman was Jana Kovchuk, a model from Ukraine.

Investigators checked their phones, which had been seized at the scene.

In Sed’s correspondence, they found messages with a contact saved as a they corresponded in Arabic.

Experts translated the messages which were about delivering goods, new girls, and preparing the premises.

The last message from Sah was sent 2 days before the fire.

Come tomorrow evening, we need to discuss something.

A theory began to take shape.

Said did not just buy the house for privacy.

He used it to house women supplied to him by Akmed.

Most likely it was part of human trafficking.

Women were lured to the US under the guise of work and then held captive.

Some of them may have been used for prostitution, others for personal needs, said paid Ahmed for the supplies.

But something went wrong.

Perhaps Jana found out about the basement.

Or Ahmed decided to get rid of Sed so he wouldn’t have to share the profits.

or there was a quarrel.

There was no concrete evidence yet, but the arson theory seemed the most likely.

Someone wanted to cover up the crime by starting a fire, but didn’t take into account that the women in the basement would survive.

The search for Akmed continued.

His photo was sent to all airports, border crossings, and police stations.

3 days later, a lead came in.

A camera at a gas station in Maryland had captured a van similar to his heading north.

The police organized a manhunt.

Akmed was detained at the Pennsylvania border as he attempted to cross the state heading towards Canada.

In the car, they found a passport with a different name, a wad of cash, and a phone that he had tried to destroy but didn’t have time to.

The data was recovered.

There were messages with S, photos of the mansion, and contacts of other people allegedly involved in human trafficking.

Akmed was taken to a temporary detention center.

He refused to speak without a lawyer.

When the lawyer finally arrived, Akmed began to testify.

He claimed that he had nothing to do with the fire.

He said that he worked for Sah.

He brought women, looked after them, but nothing more.

He did not start the fire.

On the night of the fire, he was in Washington, DC, and he had an alibi, receipts from a bar and witnesses.

Investigators checked and found that his alibi was partially, but not completely confirmed.

He was indeed seen at the bar, but he left around 10 pm The fire started at 11 pm He had time to get to the mansion, set the fire, and return.

But there was no direct evidence, no fingerprints on the canister, no witnesses who saw him near the house that night.

The case had reached a dead end.

The investigators went back to the beginning.

Lawson and his partner, Detective Emily Jang, began questioning the women from the basement in more detail.

They wanted to understand who else might be connected to this story besides Sah and Ahmed.

Marina, who had been held captive the longest, remembered some details.

She said that another man, not Ahmed, had come down to the basement several times.

He was younger, around 30, and spoke English without an accent.

He came to check on the women and sometimes brought them medicine, painkillers, and antibiotics.

Marina thought he was a doctor or someone like that.

He wasn’t cruel.

He didn’t beat them, but he didn’t help them either.

He just did his job silently, as if it were a normal routine.

Lawson asked Marina to describe this man in more detail.

She remembered that he was tall, thin, with light hair, and wore glasses.

He had a tattoo on his arm, some kind of inscription, but she couldn’t make it out.

He didn’t talk much, mostly asking if anyone had a fever or was in pain.

Once he gave Marina some pills for a headache.

Another time, he bandaged a wound on Oxana’s leg.

She had cut herself on the edge of a metal chain and it had become infected.

This man came, treated the wound, and applied a bandage.

Marina asked him why he was there, why he was doing this.

He didn’t answer, just looked at her and left.

Jang suggested that he might be someone from the medical staff, perhaps even legally employed, a paramedic, a nurse, or maybe a medical college student, someone who had access to medicine and knew the basics of first aid.

They requested data from hospitals and clinics within a 50-mi radius of the mansion, looking for employees who might fit the description.

At the same time, they checked Sed and Ahmed’s phone records.

Perhaps one of their contacts would match.

The breakthrough came unexpectedly.

One of the police officers working at the scene of the fire remembered seeing a medical bag in the mansion’s garage.

At the time, he hadn’t thought much of it, assuming it was just a first aid kit, which every home has.

But now, after Marina’s words, it became important.

Lawson returned to the mansion, which was still cordoned off as a crime scene, and found the bag.

Inside were syringes, ampools of saline solution, antibiotics, painkillers, bandages, tourniquets, and gloves.

Everything was packed professionally, like in an ambulance.

One of the ampules had a sticker with the name of the pharmacy, a small pharmacy in Fairfax, 20 m from the mansion.

The detectives drove there.

The pharmacy owner, an elderly man named Roger Patton, said that such ampules were only sold by prescription or to medical institutions.

He checked the database.

These specific drugs had been ordered twice in the last month.

Once by a clinic in Fairfax and the second time by a private individual.

The name in the database was Daniel Curado.

Roger remembered him, a young guy who said he worked as a paramedic and needed supplies for fieldwork.

He showed his license.

Everything was in order.

So, Roger sold him the drugs without question.

The police found Daniel Curado within a few hours.

He was 31 years old and did indeed work as a paramedic for a private medical company that served corporate events, sports competitions, concerts, and sometimes private parties.

He lived alone in a small apartment in the suburbs of Washington with no family.

Neighbors said he was quiet, polite, and rarely socialized.

When the police came to his door, he opened it calmly without panic.

Lawson immediately noticed a tattoo on his right arm, an inscription in Latin letters, something like a quote, but he didn’t have time to make it out clearly.

Daniel was taken to the police station for questioning.

He did not deny that he knew Ahmed.

He said that they had met a year ago in a bar, struck up a conversation.

Akmed learned that Daniel worked in medicine and offered him a side job to occasionally come and check on the health of people who needed help, but did not want to go to the hospital.

Daniel agreed.

Akmed paid well, $500 per visit in cash, no questions asked.

At first, Daniel thought they were illegal immigrants who were afraid of deportation.

That’s how Akmed explained it.

Then Daniel began to realize that it wasn’t that simple.

He saw women in the basement, saw chains, saw their condition, but he was afraid to ask questions.

He was afraid that if he refused, Akmed would do something bad to him or his family.

Daniel didn’t have a family, but Akmed hinted that he knew where he lived and where he worked.

Lawson asked how many times Daniel had come to the mansion.

He replied that he had been there about 10 times in the last 6 months.

Akmed always called him saying that he needed to check on the girls.

Daniel would come, go down to the basement, examine them, give them medicine if necessary, and leave.

He never asked any unnecessary questions.

Once he asked Ahmed why these women were here, why they were chained.

Ahmed replied that it was none of his business, that he should do his job and get paid.

Daniel fell silent.

Since then, he had simply done what was asked of him.

Jang asked if Daniel knew about Sed.

He nodded.

He had seen him once by chance.

He had come at Akmed’s request, gone up to the first floor, and there was a man there, well-dressed with an expensive watch, talking on the phone in another language.

Akmed introduced him as the master of the house.

Said didn’t even look at Daniel, continued his conversation, and left.

They never met again.

But Daniel understood that Sah was the boss, that he was the one who organized everything, and Akmed just followed orders.

The investigators asked about the night of the fire.

Daniel said he wasn’t there.

Akmed hadn’t called him for several days before that.

The last time Daniel had come to the mansion was a week before the tragedy to check on the women, and everything was relatively normal.

No emergencies.

He left and Ahmed didn’t call him again.

When Daniel heard about the fire on the news, he was frightened.

He realized that sooner or later the police would get to him, but he didn’t run away.

He decided to wait.

Maybe he thought they wouldn’t find him.

Or maybe he just didn’t know what to do.

Lawson didn’t quite believe him.

He asked why Daniel hadn’t gone to the police if he knew something illegal was going on.

He replied that he was afraid.

He was afraid of Akmed, afraid of the consequences, afraid that he would be accused of complicity, and he was afraid of losing money.

Daniel was in debt.

A car loan, tuition for his younger brother who was in college, rent aars.

The $500 per visit helped him stay afloat.

He knew it was wrong, but he continued because he needed the money.

Because he had no choice.

That’s how he explained it.

Detectives couldn’t charge Daniel with arson.

He had an alibi.

He was at work on the night of the fire, which was confirmed by his colleagues.

But he could be charged with complicity in human trafficking and illegal detention.

He didn’t rescue the women.

He didn’t report them to the police.

He continued to help them, thereby helping the criminals keep their victims alive so they could continue to exploit them.

The prosecutor decided that this was enough to bring charges.

Daniel was arrested and taken into custody.

Meanwhile, they began questioning Jana Kovchuk.

More precisely, they began reconstructing her story because she herself had died.

The police contacted her family in Kiev.

Her mother and younger sister.

Her mother, Leuda, said that she last spoke to her daughter 2 days before her death.

Jana called and said that everything was fine, that she was in America with a friend relaxing.

She sounded cheerful.

There was no sign of trouble.

Leuda did not know the details of Jana’s relationship with Sah.

She only knew that her daughter was dating a wealthy man who traveled a lot.

Jana didn’t talk much.

She was secretive in general and didn’t like to share personal details.

Investigators checked Jana’s phone.

In her correspondence with her friends, there were mentions of Sed.

She wrote that he was generous but strange, that he sometimes behaved unusually.

He might leave in the middle of the night without explaining where he was going or lock himself in his office for several hours without answering his phone.

One of her friends asked if this was dangerous.

Jana replied that no, he was just a busy man.

But in another correspondence a few days before her death, Jana wrote to another friend.

Something’s not right here.

I can feel it.

Her friend asked what exactly.

Jana replied, “I can’t explain it.

Just strange noises at night as if someone is downstairs.

” Then she added, “Maybe it was just my imagination.

” She did not return to the subject.

This correspondence made investigators think.

Perhaps Jana heard women in the basement.

Perhaps she began to suspect that something suspicious was going on in the house.

If Sed realized that she had guessed, he might have tried to get rid of her.

But then why start a fire in which he himself died? The theory that Sed killed Jana and then killed himself by starting a fire seemed strange.

If he wanted to die, why choose this method? It would have been easier to take pills or shoot himself.

Fire is slow, painful, and unpredictable.

The investigators returned to the theory of a third party.

Someone came to the house, dowsed the bedroom with gasoline, locked the door, and set it on fire.

That someone could have been Ahmed, but his alibi held up.

Jang suggested checking the surveillance camera footage in the area.

The mansion itself was not equipped with cameras, but there were cameras on neighboring properties and on the roads.

The police requested recordings from the week before the fire and the night of the tragedy.

A camera at an intersection 3 mi from the mansion captured Ahmed’s van passing by around 900 pm on the night of the fire.

He was driving in the direction of the mansion, but he was not filmed going back.

Either he returned by another route, or he stayed there.

A camera at a gas station 10 mi away recorded the same van around 1:00 am after the fire.

It turns out that Akmed was indeed near the mansion at the right time.

Detectives questioned Akmed again.

They showed him the recordings.

He changed his testimony.

He said that yes, he had come to the mansion that night, but he did not go inside.

Said had called him, asked him to come, said they needed to discuss something urgent.

Ahmed arrived, parked at the gate, and called Sed.

Said did not answer.

Akmed waited for about 20 minutes, then left.

He saw smoke on his way back, but did not think much of it.

He thought someone was burning trash.

Lawson didn’t believe him.

He asked why he hadn’t mentioned it right away.

Akmed replied that he was afraid he would be blamed.

The detective asked if he had gone inside the house.

Akmed said no.

They asked if he had seen anyone else nearby.

Akmed said no, no one.

But then after a few minutes of silence, he added that maybe there had been.

When he was driving up, he saw another car parked off to the side near the woods.

It was a small dark-coled sedan.

He didn’t think much of it at the time.

Continue reading….
Next »