Posted on 07/27/2005 11:19:53 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
STAMFORD, Conn. — The night a newlywed vanished from his honeymoon cruise, the sounds of a loud party were coming from his stateroom, followed by male voices arguing on the balcony and then a "horrific thud," a fellow passenger says.
The ship was in the Mediterranean Sea when Connecticut resident George Smith IV disappeared more than three weeks ago.
No one has been charged, but Connecticut's top federal prosecutor said Tuesday that the 26-year-old's disappearance is being aggressively investigated and reports of blood on the ship raise concerns. The comments are the first by a U.S. prosecutor on the case and the strongest indication yet that officials suspect foul play.
"We think the circumstances are unique enough and suspicious enough that a thorough investigation is warranted," U.S. Attorney Kevin O'Connor told The Associated Press.
O'Connor said investigators were still interviewing passengers and staff from the ship, and he declined to discuss details of the investigation.
Turkish prosecutor told the AP last week that Smith's new wife, Jennifer Hagel, was not suspected in her husband's disappearance.
The couple had been drinking and gambling at the ship's casino that night, the prosecutor said. The next morning, he said, Hagel woke up and went to the gym. Smith was reported missing after cleaners found blood in their cabin. There was also blood on the balcony and a hand print on the side of the ship, the prosecutor said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Clete Hyman, a passenger in a neighboring stateroom, described what he heard during the cruise in an interview Monday night on MSNBC's "Scarborough Country."
The night Smith disappeared, Hyman said he heard what sounded like a loud party in Smith's room, then "some very loud arguing out on the balcony."
He said he heard several male voices and then noises in the cabin that sounded like furniture being moved. Then, he said, he heard a "horrific thud."
O'Connor wouldn't comment Tuesday on Hyman's account.
Smith's and Hagel's families, who live in Connecticut, have not publicly commented and did not return phone messages.
Turkish authorities handled the case after the disappearance was reported July 5 when the ship docked at Kusadasi, a resort area in the Aegean region of Turkey. U.S. officials were given the case last week.
I know Connecticut isn't Turkey, but this is SOP for the cops and lawyers. First the spouse is not suspected, then he/she's a "person of interest," then you get to watch them in a car chase on Fox News.
LOL!
I know. Ships captain likely said,
"Swab that deck! We have to head off
to the next port." Business as usual.
Yes, I watched Scarborough and I think
the Attorney General is seriously
keeping tabs on the investigation.
Hope we hear something soon.
LOL
A little slow on the up-take.
no worries
seriously though have you heard anything new on this case i have not
It will be as hard to hear something as some of the other cases that have come to light recently. When the evidence is washed away like that, he might as well have been abducted by aliens (the space kind, not the Russian kind.)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nypost/20050726/cm_nypost/lowdoingsonthehighseas/nc:742
A passenger who identified himself only as Dominick told me that the newlyweds "had been drinking heavily.
"Apparently, the wife went back to her cabin, and the husband went back to some acquaintances at the bar who identified themselves as coming from Brooklyn — of Russian descent."
Another passenger who identified himself as Vito said that later on deck, he saw some men, maybe 10, maybe 12, carrying an extremely drunk George Smith into the solarium of the liner.
So it was only one group of guys....the Russians from Brooklyn.
"I just looked up the Mass. sex offender’s registry for Dennis port. We are leaving Friday for the Cape. They did not have pictures of the 7 Predators that are in the area. If they did I would have printed them out and took them along on my vacation. LOL"
Dennisport=Moscow On The Sands.
Must be similar to the "151's" that Joran orders for his women; at least that what Beth said on Greta this evening. (151 proof something)
The original absinthe is not at all the same absinthe made today. The absinthe that was so infamous contained woodworm (I think that was the name). But it is different.
So it isn't the one that makes you hallucinate?
http://www.justicemag.com/daily/item/958.html
Royal Caribbean: Missing Honeymooner's Life Worth $325,000
If the cruise line is at fault for George Smith's apparent death, his family's ability to recover will be limited.
I would love to just have one sip though, wouldn't you? :)
Yup, that's a good Connecticut name.
Just getting caught up on this story ... I just found out from my mom that the missing man is/was my (late) childhood dentist's grandson.
Say, "Ahhhhhh."
http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/local/scn-sa-nor.smith6aug06,0,5341949.story?coll=stam-news-local-headlines
Connecticut's top federal prosecutor would not confirm reports yesterday that investigators are considering two Russian men and a California teenager as possible suspects in the mysterious disappearance of a Greenwich man from a Mediterranean cruise ship last month.
Interesting about the California teenager!
You shudda started a new thread! :)
By many accounts he was spending money like a madman during the cruise ... buying rounds for strangers, etc. With his wife passed out he would have been an easy mark.
Very sad.
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