Body in Lane Cove River: Friend of Cecilia Haddad left country over weekend
POLICE are checking flight records in a desperate attempt to track down a man who left the country over the weekend in their attempts to find the killer of Brazilian mining executive Cecilia Haddad.
NSW
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POLICE are checking flight records in a desperate attempt to track down a man who left the country over the weekend in their attempts to find the killer of Brazilian mining executive Cecilia Haddad.
The Brazilian national left Australia on either Saturday night or Sunday morning and is a friend Ms Haddad.
Police insist he is not a suspect but is a person of interest and are keen to check his alibi.
Earlier, homicide detectives said the distinctive car belonging to Ms Haddad could be a key to solving her murder.
Ms Haddad’s red 2013 Fiat 500 with a black roof was found in the carpark at West Ryde Railway Station late on Sunday and she was last heard from in a telephone call to a friend about 8am to 9.30am on Saturday.
Police said the registration number is DJV 50H.
They earlier said the car was known to have been at her home in St Annes St, Ryde, on Saturday afternoon.
Detective Acting Inspector Ritchie Sim today appealed for help to trace Ms Haddad’s last moments and said police had already gathered CCTV footage from the area.
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He said police had been in touch with Ms Haddad’s devastated mother in Brazil.
Ms Haddad, 38, had been at a barbecue with friends on Friday evening and her body was found about 10.15am on Sunday floating fully clothed in the Lane Cover River.
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A very well-liked person
Insp Sim said she was a “very friendly lady” with a large circle of friends.
“A very well-liked person,” he said.
Ms Haddad left the barbecue with plans for a busy weekend that would never happen after her body was found in the Lane Cove River.
Police now believe Ms Haddad was murdered, The Daily Telegraph can reveal.
Ms Haddad, an expert on logistics who had worked in Australia since 2007, had earlier been identified as the woman whose body was found by kayakers just offshore from Woolwich.
When she failed to make it to appointments on Saturday, friends called police concerned for her welfare.
When they still hadn’t heard from her on Sunday, they filed a missing person’s report. Hours earlier, police pulled a woman’s body from water near Angelo St, Woolwich.
It was not until Monday that police connected the missing person’s report with the discovery of the body.
The woman’s body was found dressed in a navy-green long-sleeved jumper, khaki pants and several silver bracelets on both wrists.
Police initially reported there were no suspicious circumstances in the death, indicating they believed it may have been an accidental drowning or suicide.
Homicide detectives are now trying to track Ms Haddad’s movements from Friday evening and Saturday afternoon.
“By all accounts, Cecilia enjoyed an active social life and had made a large circle of friends during her time in Sydney,” Detective Acting Inspector Ritchie Sim said.
The cause of her death is yet to be determined and police have declined to say why they believe the death is suspicious.
Police seek CCTV and dash-cam footage
Insp Sim said police are appealing for anyone who saw Ms Haddad or her car in the area of Hunters Hill, Ryde and Woolwich to come forward.
“We are specifically seeking CCTV or dash-cam footage of Cecilia or her vehicle,” he said.
An autopsy is expected to be carried out today, and investigators hope a forensic examination will reveal clues including time of death and how long the body was in the water.
It is understood police will also examine tide charts and overnight currents to help determine where Ms Haddad’s body entered the water.
Her ex-husband flew from Perth to Sydney yesterday to formally identify the body. Her relatives in Brazil were also informed of her death.
Ms Haddad was working in Sydney as managing director for Newcastle engineering firm CHC Consulting.
Police search dead woman’s home
There was a strong police presence on St Anne St this morning, with a Ryde police van parked outside the modern-looking apartment block where it is believed Ms Haddad had lived.
At 7.10am a second police cruiser also parked on the street and the officers performed a change over, with the second set of partners heading back inside the lobby of the apartment block to continue their investigation.
Resident Dev Balagiritharan, 37, said it was “quite strange” to think something so terrible had affected the quiet and safe neighbourhood he had grown up in, with the apartment block in question only 100m away from church he attends.
“The worst thing you see around here is trolleys getting pushed away from the shopping centre. It’s really shocking,” Mr Balagiritharan said.
“It’s horrible, it’s just unbelievable — the fact that someone on this street has been impacted is terrible.”
The shocked neighbour also said that while he did usually notice what cars were parked in the street, he didn’t remember seeing Ms Haddad’s unique red 2013 Fiat 500.
Officers from Ryde Police Area Command are still inside Ms Haddad’s apartment this morning as they continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding her mysterious death.
The successful businesswoman spoke three languages — Spanish, English and Portuguese.
She graduated from Brazil’s Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro in 2002 and also had degrees from the Melbourne Business School and University of Tasmania. She had more than 14 years’ experience in the resources sector, according to an online profile.