Riyadh: The cause of death of the 15-year-old Algerian girl, who died while making the Ramadan Umrah pilgrimage, with her family in Riyadh, has yet to be determined.
However an investigation team, comprising criminal evidence experts and representatives of the Prosecution and Investigation Commission (PIC), has begun examining the body of Sarah Marees, the young woman who fell tragically to her death from the 16th floor of her hotel in Makkah.
The teenager’s death resulted in an outcry amongst Algerians making the annual pilgrimage, with many demanding an immediate investigation into the exact cause of her death.
Initial press reports suggested she was being chased at the time and that she may have been raped or even murdered.
A preliminary report by forensic authorities said there is no evidence of rape however.
The final results of the examinations are expected within three weeks.
Local newspapers also claim two Yemeni men, suspected of having an ‘illicit’ relationship with the girl, have been imprisoned and are currently in solitary confinement, ahead of their trial.
Meanwhile, local daily Okaz said on Tuesday that the hotel, in which the men were employed without sponsorship, might face being closed down for three months because of this violation.
It stated that one of the suspected Yemeni men did have a relationship with the girl and claimed that the prime suspect, named Ammar, admitted to having an affair with her and even had dinner with her on the evening of her death.
Some of the staff in the hotel say they saw the young woman fighting with the man before jumping out of the hotel window to her death.
Local newspapers also reported that three Bangladeshi hotel workers have been arrested in connection with her death and are currently under investigation.
Police are said to be looking for another Bangladeshi man who fled the scene of the incident.
Okaz quoted the girl’s guardian, Abu Madyan Al Khateeb as saying that she will be buried in Makkah, after the cause of her death is finally determined.
