WASHINGTON/DAMMAM, 4 February — Even though it is the weekend in the United States, in a landfill outside Denver the search for Abdul Aziz Al-Koohaji's body continues. Police have now brought in a forward-looking infrared helicopter to assist in the search.
The helicopter flies in a grid pattern over the landfill using its infrared equipment to locate hot spots in the decomposing trash. These hotspots are indicative of large concentrations of decaying organic material. At one point police thought they had located the body, but after hours of digging they found the carcass of a deer instead.
Denver police admit that excavating the landfill has been a learning experience. They started out using shovels and have now shifted to pitchforks. Heavy earth moving equipment is being considered, as the area to explore is the size of a football field. It is miserable work with broken glass and other potentially injurious objects constantly underfoot and a horrible odor enveloping the search party. Dogs could not be brought in as the location was too dangerous for them.
Denver officials are increasingly worried over the cost of the search with expenses already reaching into the tens of thousands of dollars. Filed police affidavits are shedding light on how it was discovered that Al-Koohaji had been the victim of foul play. According to the affidavits Muhammad Tunaiji, the victim's best friend, contacted Denver police on Jan. 18 to advise them that Al-Koohaji was missing. He told police that two of Al-Koohaji's friends, Rashid Al-Yousef and Mishael Al-Suwaidi, had picked up the Saudi student from the airport on Jan. 10. From there they had driven to Aurora, Colorado, where Al-Suwaidi lived with Naif Al-Yousef and Tariq Al-Dossary. At that point Al-Suwaidi left the vehicle and Rashid Al-Yousef took Al-Koohaji home.
Al-Koohaji was supposed to meet Rashid Al-Yousef later that night for dinner but he never did. Starting a missing person's investigation, Denver police found that the victim's VW Jeta was missing. They learned that it had been sold back to the VW dealer for $10,080 by someone claiming to be Al-Koohaji. The car had been purchased just two months before for $25,000. Police then learned from Tunaiji that the victim's apartment had been ransacked and a lap-top computer, video camera and suitcase were missing, but it did not appear that any sort of struggle had taken place there.
The Al-Koohaji family had hired private investigators to look into the student's disappearance. Those investigators brought police surveillance tape from the bank and car dealership and Al-Koohaji was not on either tape. However, family members and friends were able to identify two suspects from the tapes -- Naif Al-Yousef and Tariq Al-Dossary.
Al-Yousef had misrepresented himself as Al-Koohaji in the bank transactions. Al-Dossary returned to Saudi Arabia and authorities took him into custody. Soon after they also apprehended Al Suwaidi. The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington notified the Denver police that Al-Dossary had been interviewed and was claiming that one of the other suspects had strangled Al-Koohaji.
Once police arrested Al-Yousef in Denver more details became clear. Al-Yousef confessed that the three suspects had planned the murder since late December. They had purchased rope and duct tape to be used in the kidnapping and murder. The night the alleged crime took place, they lured Al-Koohaji to their house in Aurora where they taped him to a chair in the basement. Al-Kohaji pleaded with them and offered them $1,000 if they would let him go. Then Al-Kohaji was strangled. The suspects' versions of the events differ on who did the killing.
The trio then purchased a large black plastic bag from a 7-11 store and put the victim inside. By car they took the body to a large trash dumpster in Littleton, Colorado. Based on the affidavit sworn by Al-Yousef the Denver police now feel that there is probable cause to believe that the three suspects were involved in the crimes of murder in the 1st degree, conspiracy to commit murder and kidnapping.
