SALINAS, Calif. (AP) A bizarre suicide pact became the focus
Monday of an investigation into the deaths of two young women found
in an ocean view cabin along the Central California coast,
authorities said.
Notes found at the scene appeared to indicate that Jacqueline
Toves, 26, and Abigail Tapia, 27, may have taken their own lives
after plummeting into despair, said Monterey County Sheriff Mike
Kanalakis.
``There was no indication of foul play and there was no
indication of trauma'' to the women's bodies, Kanalakis said.
The exact causes of the deaths had not been determined pending
the results of toxicology reports, and the sheriff declined to say
when the women may have taken their lives.
The bodies of the women, who lived together as a couple in Long
Beach, were found Friday lying side-by-side in a bed at the Gorda
Springs Resort in the rustic Big Sur region.
Their hands were bound with duct tape and black plastic garbage
bags were pulled snugly over their heads, authorities said. The
tape was wound more tightly around one of the woman's wrists than
the others, Kanalakis said.
One woman had a grinning Halloween mask over her plastic bag,
said Leonardo Flores, an inn manager who saw the bodies. Another
feathered mask lay nearby, he said.
The sheriff wouldn't elaborate on any connection between a
frowning, adobe-colored decorative mask hanging on the door of the
Long Beach, Calif. apartment shared by the two women and any of the
masks or other objects found in the hotel room.
Kanalakis said drugs were found at the scene, but he declined to
say what kind.
``Based on information that we collected at the scene, we've
concluded that both young ladies were despondent in their lives and
they were clearly upset,'' he said, adding that the women's
families had been notified of their deaths by authorities.
The investigation continued Monday as authorities traveled back
to Gorda, Kanalakis confirmed, but he insisted the public was not
in any danger as a result of ``the terrible tragedy.''
Set on a cliff overlooking the ocean and charging $200 to $500 a
night, the Gorda Springs Resort usually attracts a mix of hikers,
cyclists, celebrities and honeymooners, said Sherwin Miller, the
hotel's owner.
The women checked into the inn Oct. 3, Miller said, renting a
cabin with a cozy, rustic feel and a fireplace and porch.
The women left a ``do not disturb'' sign on their door and
declined housekeeping service during their stay, said Flores, the
inn manager.
Flores said that when a neighbor staying in the cottage next
door complained of loud pounding coming from the women's cabin at
about 4 a.m. the first night of their stay, they took 15 or 20
minutes to answer. Finally a woman appeared in the doorway without
saying a word.
``He said when she answered the door she just looked at him and
listened and closed the door. Never said anything,'' he said.
Though the cabin had no kitchen, Flores said, he only knew of
one time that they went out for food the Wednesday before they
died, he said, one of the women went to the resort's restaurant for
a takeout order of pasta and clam chowder.
While they were out, he checked on their room, he said. He was
concerned about what they were doing because they never seemed to
leave, but there was nothing out of order.
``I just did a little quick look,'' he said. ``I got concerned
why did the girls rent the room for seven days and the blinds are
closed.''
When he found the bodies on Friday, he said, the room was clean
and women's clothes were neatly folded.
Court records show that Toves, who served in the Air National
Guard for five years starting in 1996 and recently had attended the
DeVry Institute of Technology, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in
March.
The trustee in her case, David May, said he didn't remember her
personally but was having the records of her case retrieved from
storage. He said Toves had no assets that could be used to pay
creditors and that she was discharged from her debts on July 14.
``She doesn't owe anybody anything, which doesn't mean anything
to her at the moment,'' he said.
On Monday, all the shades in the apartment where the women
lived, just blocks from the beach, were drawn.
Dan Kaplan, 29, a next-door neighbor, said the two appeared
inseparable.
``Every time I saw one, I saw the other,'' Kaplan said.
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Associated Press Writer Tim Molloy in Long Beach contributed to
this report.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)