Monday, February 11, 2013

Funny Talented Very Smart Woman, 21, Killed By Another Woman With No Record Of Crime Or Violence

Posted by devorah





Sound familiar? Sadly, probably too much so.

The stabbing death of Susan Sarkis is believed to have happened in a spiral of anger and violence on Saturday night, in Brighton Le Sands, a southern suburb of Sydney Australia,

The woman arrested is the apartment’s 31-year-old owner who is now being held in custody. A video and the story so far are included in this report in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Details about Ms Sarkis are still emerging but she was clearly talented, warm, and admired. Messages posted online by her cousins are quoted as follows.

“RIP little cousin. When I received that phone call on New Year’s Day and u were wishing me a happy birthday I was almost in tears seeing as you always remembered my birthday,” he wrote.

“Well now I’m in tears remembering you. We miss you. Your life was cut too short, but your in a better place. Love you cuz and we will definitely see you later.”

Another cousin wrote: “RIP Suzie.. A life cut short but the memory of a beautiful young girl will live in our heart forever. May God give your parents, Chrissy & Anthony the strength to get through this very difficult time. Love you cuz xx”...

“Sweetie, habibi susie my little sister. I’m shattered you’re a beautiful sweet angel sweetness,” another wrote.

Below: Brighton Le Sands is south of Sydney downtown, by the airport, on its “other harbor” Botany Bay









Posted by devorah on 02/11/13 at 04:07 PM in Various hypothesesPondering motiveThe legal followups

Comments

Very sad case. Too common. I wonder where her family was from. “Sarkis” is a common name for Christian Middle East families especially from Lebanon, Turkey and Armenia.

“Habibi” means “darling” in Arabic, actually for a male, the correct female equivalent is “habibti”.  Those minority families tend to use that term a lot, and to remain very close. As with Meredith’s family, this will hurt them terribly.

In the first shot under Devorah’s post, of the beach, there is a high concentration of Italians between Brighton Le Sands and the Sydney downtown.  As you’d expect it is colorful with lots of good food stores and restaurants.

Roll on, a world that is more cosmopolitan. For the most part, when it finally comes about, that mixing reduces violence.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 02/11/13 at 05:10 PM | #

Well, i recall from just this summer in the Region where I live, a young woman, Annalisa Lombardi, was killed by her best friend Monica Sabrina Montagna with 30 knife blows. No known motive. It’s not that exotic piece of news.

http://bologna.notizie.it/uccide-lamica-a-coltellate-e-cade-dal-balcone-nella-fuga/

An american criminologist recently published an essay about female sex offenders.

There is even a very recent study on female sexual homicide offenders (the authors analyzed a sample of 204 cases (!). From only one country!)

http://hsx.sagepub.com/content/17/1/96.abstract

Posted by Yummi on 02/11/13 at 05:58 PM | #

The alleged killer in this case was roommates with the victim. Sound familiar?

Sad though it is, these types of crimes are not unheard of.

Posted by devorah on 02/12/13 at 01:42 AM | #

Hi Yummi

The Machine has often posted that such crimes by women not unlike Amanda Knox are almost the rule rather than the exception and he has posted stories of some.

In the US such unexpected crimes by women against women happen almost on a daily basis. There’s a never-ending TV program here profiling them called “Women Who Kill”.

http://tinyurl.com/aq2b5lg

Amanda Knox is in plenty of bad company, it seems.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 02/12/13 at 03:59 PM | #

Hi Devorah

I see some updates to your timely report today 3 and a half days later.

Her flatmate Katherine Abdullah will face a court on April 2 charged with one count of murder.

Susun Sarkis was in fact not bashed with a vase.

The call to emergency services is believed to have been made by Katherine Abdullah and Susan Sarkis was taken still alive to the hospital where she died.

The argument seems to have been going on for quite a while> There’s no motive as yet. Maybe we get an attempt at one at the trial.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 02/12/13 at 04:04 PM | #

It’s just been announced that AK is going to be interviewed by Diane Sawyer and it’s going to air on ABC on April 30th…

Posted by Spencer on 02/12/13 at 04:10 PM | #

Hi Spencer. Thanks. That followed pretty fast our much-read post questioning whether Knox has a full set of marbles thanks to her dad. More comment here:

http://truejustice.org/ee/index.php?/tjmk/comments/reasonable_doubt_in_italian_law/#c13966

Posted by Peter Quennell on 02/12/13 at 06:43 PM | #

Indeed it did -  It might behove us all to think of a few choice questions that Ms Sawyer could put to AK.

Posted by Spencer on 02/12/13 at 07:18 PM | #

Hi Spencer, We plan to try but there is considerable skepticism as to whether Sawyer will ask any substantial questions at all. Knox had significantly more leverage in setting the ground rules of this interview that Sollecito had when he was on Katie. I’m sure for example that questions about her and her family’s finances are off limits. Also questions about which parts of the book were ghost-written. We will have to reach out to Sawyer directly since we know the producer Nikki Battiste and reporter Elizabeth Vargas are in the PR campaign’s pocket.

Posted by brmull on 02/13/13 at 04:55 AM | #

I like the sort of contradiction in “substantial questions”, since the substance is in the answers. Of course there’s a hunger for answers, but since we know a lot, there seems to be more hunger for the right questions. Silence already would be a satisfying answer. Just a thought.

Posted by Helder Licht on 02/13/13 at 10:33 AM | #

I did not mean to provocate. I know what is meant by “substantial questions”. In the morning I am a bit philosofical. 😊

Posted by Helder Licht on 02/13/13 at 08:20 PM | #

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