The death of a Google executive on a yacht is raising new questions about the death of a nightclub owner on the other side of the country -- because of the possible role an alleged prostitute played in each case.
Alix Catherine Tichelman, 26, appeared in court Wednesday in Santa Cruz, California, where she faces a series of charges in the death of Forrest Timothy Hayes, 51. The married father of five was found dead in November on his 50-foot yacht. Authorities say Tichelman gave him an injection of heroin and then, as he began to die, she sipped her wine, gathered her belongings, and walked away.
She has not entered a plea.
Two months before Hayes died, Dean Riopelle, whom Tichelman identified online as her boyfriend, died at his home in Milton, Georgia. Tichelman was there at the time, and she called 911.
"Her story was: She was in the shower, heard a large crash, and then found him unconscious on the floor," Capt. Shawn McCarty of Milton police told CNN Thursday.
"I think my boyfriend overdosed or something, he, like, he won't respond," she said in the brief call, shortly before hanging up.
The dispatcher called Tichelman back. Asked why she thought it was an overdose, Tichelman responded, "Because there's nothing else it could be." Asked whether it was accidental or intentional, she replied, "definitely accidental." He was taking painkillers and "drinking a lot too," she said.
The call cut off. The dispatcher tried at least twice more, but the phone rang and went to voicemail.
The medical examiner ruled Riopelle's death an accidental overdose from heroin and alcohol. "At the time, we never thought anything different," McCarty said.
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