March 1, 2006
Grad Student's Murder Scares City
Police are searching in vain for clues in the murder of graduate student Imette St. Guillen, who was last seen at a downtown bar 18 hours before her naked body was found in Brooklyn. They released images of the comforter she was found wrapped in, alongside Fountain Avenue, saying the Springmaid comforter is something one would find at a cheap motel, asking the public to call Crimestoppers (800-577-TIPS) with any clues. Police have ruled out St. Guillen's ex-boyfriend from Boston and a John Jay grad school classmate as suspects, leaving them with a few theories about what could have happened: She might have been attacked by someone on the street or by a cabby; she could have left with someone she met at a bar who she later tried to escape; or she was jumped by someone on the street. The police are hoping to find the person who made the 911 call that led them to St. Guillen's body; detectives think the person has some inside information because the body was in a very remote area that wasn't very accessible.
And the Daily News has given the murderer a nickname, the "Mummy Maniac," given the way St. Guillen's face was wrapped in clear tape. Police sources say she could have suffocated while taped and that he could attack again (her hair had been cut off as well.) The 24 year old's sister and mother appeared on Rita Crosby's MSNBC show last night, also asking that anyone with information to come forward during a very sad segment: Her sister Alejandra said, "She loved New York. New York was her home. She loved the people of New York. She deserves to have this person or people brought to justice" and mentioned her sister would feel better if the murderer were caught so this wouldn't happen again.
The Daily News' Michael Daly lists forty questions about the crime, with this last one: Will we remember that even if we live in the safest big city in America, the world is still a dangerous place?
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Sad story, Hope they cath her killer(s)...
"Mummy Maniac"? Did they hire former NY Post editors?
I meant "catch"...
I'm sorry...but i can't read any more about this story. It gets me so upset...I just can't...usually news stories never get to me but...
I see the Daily News is pulling a Post with that front page. At least they didn't make their sweepstakes more prominent than the news story.
The sense is alredy building that this is a serial killer-Ted Bundy-type, so I guess the DN wins the "Name the Maniac" contest. With special guest appearance by Mike Daly as Jimmy Breslin.
Hopefully some motel owner will notice one of their quilts is missing.
This murder case sounds very similar to the episode of Law and Order (not sure which new spin-off) that was on last night (Tuesday).
In this episode a young woman left with some men from a club, who later raped and murdered her. Her body was then dumped in Queens or something.
Anyway, it reminds me very much of this terriible murder.
What hotel uses quilts? Especially KMart looking ones.
I don't know what they use in short stay motels but everywhere I went had that fake polyester pile stuff.
I dunno, Friday night, dropped off in Brooklyn.
The last college kid that got this much attention was Mark Fischer, only he was wrapped in a rug.
Of course the world's still a dangerous place. People blow themselves and others up on a daily basis because of religious insanity, governments lie to their citizens, there's a global human slave trade, and do I really need to go on?
In the scheme of things, while this is a horrific tragedy, a hell of a lot more awful stuff goes on that gets scant attention -- either on the local, national, or global stages.
Can we all agree that "Safest Big City" is utter crap for most intents and purposes? Sure, the per capita crime is low, but that gets cancelled out because the population density is so high. You're still more likely to get mugged here than in, say, a smaller city with a higher crime rate.
The Post, Daily News, Newsday are in the same league: Trash.
Except Newsday. I hold them at somewhat of a higher standard then the other two.
Sigh... it was only a matter of time before Law and Order got into this discussion...
Last night a somewhat wild-eyed middle-aged guy was eyeballing me as I perused the Daily News story about this on the rack in front of my local bodega in Park Slope. When it became clear he was following me home, I paused to see if he'd keep walking. Instead he started screaming "You know what you did! You know what you did!", punched me in the face, and stole my keys before I had a chance to retreat back inside the corner store. He then wandered off with my keys. Nice to know the craziness of this poor woman's murder is infectious.
I agree your sis. These per capita crime statistics that they use are bullshit. I still believe NY has way too much crime, and that the city can do alot more to protect its citizens.
Not to mention god knows what goes on underground. The stats only show REPORTED crimes.
But each year progress is being made, if you can call that progress...
I can remember (dating myself again) when Son of Sam was caught old Abe Beame said, "Now the city can sleep safe tonight."
And my old man, the cop, said, "Yeah, like there's not a million other psychos out there."
The city is not nearly the place it was fifteen years ago. Having said that, the psychos will always be with us, I'm afraid.
Glad to see Real New Yorkers on this board.
Safest big city in the world, puuhleeeze.
It's the randomness of crime here that's frightening. In other cities, this type of crime would happen to a Hooker or someone the Green River killer goes after.
I know some will say Atlanta is more dangerous but they don't kill you like this.
It's not always hookers, rev pays, but young women in their 20s are usually the victims, so keep safe everyone! There are different types of serial killers - mission-oriented are the ones that stalk hookers and other "undesirables" but there are other types of serial killers that prey on average people as well.
People aren't bizarrely killed in other cities? What? Have you people lived anywhere else?
Do any of you have any statistics to back up anything you are saying? I just finished reading Freakonomics and you guys are acting just like the people Steven Levitt cites in the book. You're latching on to one gruesome muder and extrapolating. You fear the unknown killer and random crime in general because you have no control over it.
Meanwhile, a decapitated body is found in East Harlem.
But I guess since it didn't happen to a "co-ed" or on the Lower East Side, it's not front-page news.
I went to high school with a guy who turned out to be a serial killer of crack-addicted prostitutes upstate. There was almost zero public attention to the fact that at least eight women disappeared off the city's streets until their bodies were found in and around the killer's parents' house and property. The women were of varying races, but the simple fact was that they were society's forgotten, leading sad and desperate lives with little conventional promise. I think the only thing that eventually got the case media attention was the macabre discovery of the bodies, putrifying in an occupied home, apparently to the obliviousness of its occupants.
I'm sorry bias, but unless the headless corpse was once a hot, white, sexy woman living on the upper east side, then its not front page material.
Miss St. Guillen will do for now, but thank you for your input.
I think she's from the UWS.
I wonder what the Boston Media has on this story.
Likely Boston media headline:
"Probable Yankee Fan Rapes and Murders Boston Native"
Not much going on at the Fox affiliate on the story, except for the videotape.
Other NY/Bos news, manny ramirez finally shows up for spring training.
"Can we all agree that "Safest Big City" is utter crap for most intents and purposes? Sure, the per capita crime is low, but that gets cancelled out because the population density is so high. You're still more likely to get mugged here than in, say, a smaller city with a higher crime rate."
Statistically speaking, that's totally incorrect.
This crime just underscores the fact that, especially as a woman, you have to EXPECT trouble if you're out wandering around ALONE at 3:00 in the morning! It was really stupid of her to leave her friends that late at night. As a native, this comes second nature to me, maybe I'm assuming people don't think about that kind of stuff, but they have to, or they're inviting trouble. Actually, that doesn't only apply to NYC, but anywhere.
This is bigger news, not only because she was a young white student, but also because it has all the markings of a serial killer. Elements of the crime suggest this is not the killer's first and probably won't be the last; the sex abuse suggests a serial killer who likely kills for power. The possibility of another serial killer loose in New York City is enough to frighten the story into front-page news. Scary.
This pisses me off so much. I hate it when Hot White Chicks are murdered.
I dont know about "expect" trouble, but it doesnt ring true to me that she was out with only one other friend and yet stayed out when that friend went home. The only way I see that happening is if she had already met someone at the time the friend went home.
it's so easy to disparage someone for being out at that late hour - but one needs to remember that it's not as if the streets are desolate and empty at 3am on a saturday, particularly in that area.
there are people streaming in and out of clubs and bars, taxis roving all over the place, and there is plenty of energy in the air. 3am doesn't feel so late when many bars don't even "pick up" until after midnight.
obviously this isn't to say that people -- particularly young women in their 20s -- shouldn't worry about their safety, but i think it's important to put things into context. i think most people around her age have similarly decided to "stay out" until bar closings, which is what makes this case so personal and heartbreaking for so many people.
i also think that putting the situation into context could help police solve the case. i have no basis for this assumption, but i just think it is much more likely that she met someone at a bar rather than just getting "jumped" while walking down the street. i'm not sure which is scarier.
Smitty you sound like that cop on the Shield who's always trying to turn every crime into a serial killer, working up ridiculous profiles, etc. Just so I know - is this life imitating art, or were you the inspiration for that character?
For whatever it's worth, the *last* bar she was seen in was "The Falls" on Lafayette at Spring. The website of this bar describes it as "alluringly dim."
It seems likely that there was also more than one person involved, one of whom had a vehicle (car, SUV, van?). I presume she also had identification on her indicating that she was a student at John Jay Criminal College. Have to wonder if this could have been perpetrated as a gang initiation rite.
I meant John Jay College of Criminal Justice,
Bowery is a large thoroughfare and she was found near the belt parkway.
No way this has to do with gangs. The Gangs you're talking about don't set foot in the Belt parkway.
Go back and see what type of victims were found on the Belt.
The Gangs you're talking about don't hang out in the new Bars of the Bowery.
Let's wait till the drug report comes out and see if someone slipped her a roofie.
I'm not in any way blaming the victim or her friends but it needs to be an iron clad rule that you do not let your friend stay at the bar alone. Particularly if they're drinking more than a little. They can't really make the decision if they're really under the influence. I've annoyed many friends (and, I presume, dudes on the make) with this rule but you stay. If you're wasted, you order a coke with no rum.
I'll straight up cock-block for my friends. If they really want to get it on, exchange numbers and have a booty call when the parties' faces aren't all blurry. Everyone should leave at the same time and stay together as long as possible. I'm not paranoid, really, but I thought that was an established rule for us ladies. I love filling my body with whatever toxins I can afford/get my hands on, but that's not the time for sex with strangers.
I found out this info on 1010wins.com that was really creepy:
"Investigators theorize the killer was a stranger who somehow lured his victim out of The Falls, the Lower Manhattan bar where she was last seen early Saturday morning, before pouncing at another location. But no suspects have been identified.
. . .
According to the bar's Web site, the same owners operate Dorrian's Red Hand, the Upper East Side haunt where ``preppie killer'' Robert Chambers met Jennifer Levin before killing her in Central Park in 1986. Someone answering calls to The Falls on Wednesday declined comment."
This crime just underscores the fact that, especially as a woman, you have to EXPECT trouble if you're out wandering around ALONE at 3:00 in the morning! It was really stupid of her to leave her friends that late at night. As a native, this comes second nature to me, maybe I'm assuming people don't think about that kind of stuff, but they have to, or they're inviting trouble. Actually, that doesn't only apply to NYC, but anywhere.
RD This post was so stupid and sickening. Woohoo you are smarter than a poor girl that was RAPED... TORTURED... STRANGLED... MUTILATED... AND HAD HER FACE WRAPPED UP WITH TAPE. So while you sit there praising yourself for being so mush wiser than her I a native New Yorker will sit her praying that her killer... WHO IS THE ONE WHO WAS WRONG cause look what he did to her... is caught.
Amen, Jay. NOBODY signs on to get raped, tortured, and murdered, I don't give a shit how careless they or their friends are. Are you people seriously telling me that you travel in packs at all times? Whatever.
Traveling in packs is not a bad idea.
Anyway, she rolled the dice and got snake eyes.
You tell people where you are and who you're going with, isn't that the backbone of these victims right/national night out/no means no organizations?
It's like waving a wad of hundred dollar bills while walking down the streets of Harlem. Sure it's against the law to rob your ass but you pretty much gotta expect it.
This bitch got what she deserved.
She probably decided to act like a whore, and was looking to get "picked up" by some metrosexual. What she didn't count on was being brought to justice by being literally fucked to death. It's a shame that no videos were made and released on the Internet.
If the executioner was smart, he used chlorine bleach to destroy any evidence in or on her body.
What they need to do now is go after the sister of this slut.
More Jew York bitches need to be killed in this manner.
JESUS CHRIST, you really have to be kidding. Having a vagina is not the same as brandishing loads of cash on the street. That kind of ridiculous comparison suggests that all women should be raped and murdered by virtue of being female.
I can only assume #40 is kidding, or making fun of the rest of us, or just trying to stir things up.
If not, I think G'mist should call the NYPD and see if he's posting form the Lindenwood Diner.
hey gothamist, trace #40's IP and give it to the police.
I think this very horrendus. I am sickened by it. Let me add, this girl is not white, she is Hispanic. If any of you remember a White girl from Juliard named Sarah Fox was killed some years ago in a brutal attack and that killer was never found and also Sarah Fox's story did not make national news only local news. So dont say the news only focuses on white people....
And I think this girl has some crap friends to leave her alone at a bar -DRUNK. What kind of friends are these. I think people who are not from the city do things like this. I have friends who insist walking home drunk at 5 am alone.
How many crimes happen to young drunk women like being raped and beaten that go unreported because they were not killed?
You can bet alot. NYC is a dangerous place. I am a native Nyer and I hope women learn from this story and take precaution.
In my opinion no one should be getting drunk alone at 3 am-girl or guy.
the previous comment #40 has been moderated.
i was talking about this last night- because i was confused as to why a woman would have stayed out alone at 3 a.m. frankly, i would never go to a bar alone- be it 9 pm or 3 am. i think the sad truth here is that both she and her friend were both too drunk to make informed, wise, safe decisions that night. this is not to say that she deserved this or asked for it or brought it up on herself- because that is obviously not the case. but i think it's important to read about this story and learn that we live in a frightening world, in a big city, and need to be safe- even when we are out having fun.
Alot of people are saying, what was she doing out at 4am, but I dont know how many of you have been drunk?
I've been drunk to the point I have a blackout while functioning and I have no memory of how I got home. And I have had my cell phone lost, hat lost as a result
So please dont blame this girl for her actions
Women HAVE TO start using more common sense: I'm not saying Imette deserved what happened to her, but you don't go drinking for hours and hang out alone in bars after your friends have gone home. She started drinking at 10pm and she was still drinking at 4am! KNOW when to say enough. KNOW to stick with your friends. Imette used bad judgement. Young women think they're Carrie Bradshaw, cavorting around NYC in stillettos without a care in the world. I hope all the other women who hear this story are more careful and show better judgement, but how quickly young women forget...remember Natalee Holloway?
Sometimes the smartest of people dont use common sense because they are drunk, thats when your friends are supposed to help you.
Her friend left her at 3am, why couldnt she just stay out with her one more hour? I could see if she left at 12 am and Imette wanted to stay out more but 1 more hour?
And this is a best friend from childhood. I know my best friend would never do that to me, I can say maybe some fair weathers- aquaintance types would and they have done that but not a close friend.
I wanted to go to the wake yesterday. But I thought perhaps it was better to leave a message on imettestguillen.com instead.
Peace Mia
Has anyone investigated the possibility that one or more of John Jay College students committed the heinous crime of murdering Immette St. Guillen ? Perhaps the motive would be to set up a real crime students would try to solve and that the murder or murders belive can not be solved.
This case is so scary I have been following it on another blog and they have pictures of what is now being called a crime scene. The building next to the falls was served with a search warrant early today.
http://nvfc.us/blog/
http://nvfc.us/blog/?p=173
i grew up near the same neighborhood imette came from. it's a working class inner-city neighborhood with a relatively high crime rate. folks getting jumped,purses snatched,drug dealing are everyday occurances.she grew up in an apartment not a house. her mother has a strong working class boston accent.her mother's long time boyfriend is a boston cop. the so-called "elite" high school she attended is a boston PUBLIC exam school.her father was a recovered drug addict who died of aids (this was in the boston newspapers) when she was 9. this young woman did not come from a privilaged or elite background. and as far as race, she was what is known as a white hispanic(!)
I'm a native New Yorker who has seen and suffered a fair share of crime in town. I am completely enraged at the person or persons who committed this crime, so pardon me whie I express my anger about it. It is one of the most self-centered, merciless acts of violent, evil-inspired hate I have ever seen ANYWHERE. What gets me is the unspeakable cruelty of the asshole (or assholes) who committed these acts. Whoever did this is an evil, worthless piece of sewerslime who deserves to have has balls sawed off slowly with a rusty butter knife and stuffed into his mouth, then hung naked upside-down by a bungee cord tied around one ankle from the Brooklyn Bridge, with his head just in the filthy, icy-cold water so his struggling dunks him up and down for days until he drowns. He's not even good enough for the fish to pick at his body. Listen up, ASSHOLE: the LAW is on your trail of evidence and they are going to flush you out of your hole. Your days are numbered. Someone is going to kick your ass without mercy (just like you did to Imette) either in this life or the one to come. The wrath of a righteous God burns WHITE HOT against you. You think you are a big shot, so powerful, but you're just a a puny little L-O-S-E-R, a pathetic coward who attacks small, defenseless women because you have nothing else to live for. Fear for your life because you are gonna lose it, painfully and SOON. Don't fuck with New York, you devil. Kill yourself NOW before you get caught, because if you don't kill yourself, when you get convicted a whole lotta people are gonna come after you and destroy you, and you'll see what you did felt like, you LITTLE FUCK!
Although I agree that a girl leaving her friend alone when she's drunk is a BAD idea no matter what, you have to take it into context.
They weren't kicking back 40's in an abandoned tenament and her friend said, "I think I'm gonna call it night, you stay here ok?" They were drinking cocktails in SoHo. I work in SoHo (1 block up from The Falls), and I can't even remember the last time I heard about a crime in the area more serious than a parking violation. I would almost feel comfortable letting my grandmother walk around there at 4am.
Her friend tried to get her to leave with her, then she called her when she got home to make sure she was alright and asked when she was coming home. When I'm out drinking with girls, I have put them in cabs back to Brooklyn all the time and then make sure they call me when they're back safe. Under the circumstances, I think her friend took all reasonable precautions and she shouldn't be seen as even partially responsible for what happened.
The Bouncer was the last person seen talking with Imette and also the only employee to refuse a DNA test as reported by CBS at 11:00pm 3-6-06
I HOPE THAT IMETTE IS RESTING IN PEACE!!! I DO BELIEVE THAT IF SHE STOOD IN THE BAR BY HERSELF, KNOWING THAT IT WAS VERY LATE, SHE MUST HAVE BEEN WITH SOMEONE ELSE, OR SOMEONE MADE CONVERSATION WITH HER, I THINK SHE LEFT WITH SOMEONE ELSE, I DON'T THIMK THIS IS THE FIRST TIME SHE EVER BEEN TO THE FALLS, AND I THINK THE PERSON THAT KILLED HER MUST HAVE SEEN HR BEFORE, IF THEY FOUND HER WITH A QUILT, IT WAS PROBABLY FROM A MOTEL, WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT WE DON'T KNOW HER PRIVATE LIFE, SHE PROBABLY WAS GOING TO MEET UP WITH A GUY. I JUST WISH THE FIND THE PERSON OR THE PEOPLE THAT DID THIS TO HER.
As a bouncer who works at a NYC nightclub I can't help but wonder what the owner's of this bar were thinking, clearly having not done any kind of background check on their bouncers. Where I work we are all registered with the state and our fingerprints are on file as well. After reading all these ' that girl wasn't smart' posts I can't help but wonder about her toxicology results to see if she was slipped some kind of rophynol, or date rape drug.
On saturday night, I noticed a young girl, maybe 21, making out with her (I thought then) boyfriend in a stairwell at the club. An hour later she was hanging on some asian guy's shoulder, and then a half hour later was grinding her butt against a young african american guy. I couldn't help but wonder what happens to all these girls when they leave the club, sometime inebriated, sometimes with a new 'friend'.
Where I work we have emt's on staff, and try our best to keep someone who is intoxicated with one of their friends they arrived at the club with, and I think we do pretty well, but there is a fine line- to what extent are we responsible? If I ask some drunk girl's date if he knows her, if he arrived with her, and try to get the impaired person on their way home safe.
Yes, I agree there are many horrible crimes in the city, and that lots of even worse crimes happen and are buried on the back pages. An hispanic grad student who studies criminology got a lot of coverage. Instead of bickering and blaming the victim maybe some good can come from this horrible event, though at this time I have no idea what that could be.
Mr. Eliot, I think that's a very relevant point. At the same time, I can say that if I were the bouncer, I wouldn't submit myself to DNA testing in such a high profile case, especially given the way the guy has been portrayed in the media. He's all but convicted in the court of public opinion and the police would undoubtedly like to wrap up this case with a quick arrest since absent the bouncer, the leads are probably cold. I would immediately assume some evidence tampering and with a rap sheet like his plus the inability to afford good legal counsel, a conviction is almost guaranteed with a link like DNA. Unfortunately, it makes him look more suspicious. There are a number of things that could have occurred after she left and the bouncer may have been involved in part of them...again, we know very little about the victim's private life. She will be the angel since she is a speechless victim.
It was a horrendous crime and the person(s) responsible should be held fully accountable, but I'm not so sure that the bouncer is that person - or even that the person acted alone...
First off i want to say how much I am glad to see that the Gothamist is allowing people to express their concern and opinion about this topic. I can't really point out what exactly it is that makes me so upset about this case when every single day there are tragedies throughout the whole world and one persons tragedy is no worse or no less than another. However I am devastated by this story. I don't know Imette St.Guillen personally, so why can't I let it go? I'll tell you why...because she is a human being