Swimsuit designer Sylvie Cachay ‘had a cocktail of drugs in her system’ the night her boyfriend allegedly strangled her to death in a Soho House bathtub
- Sylvie Cachay, 33, found face up in bath at the Soho House hotel in 2011
- Her boyfriend Nicholas Brooks, 27, set to stand trial for murder on June 4
- Brooks asked police: ‘How much could I get for something like this?’
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Swimsuit designer Sylvie Cachay had a cocktail of drugs in her system that could have contributed to her tragic death in the bathtub of a Manhattan hotel, according to a forensic pathologist.
Cachay’s boyfriend, Nicholas Brooks, has been charged with strangling and drowning her to death at the upscale Soho House.
But in a pretrial hearing in Manhattan Supreme Court on Wednesday, forensic pathologist Gerard Catanese revealed evidence that would support Brooks’ innocence. He said there were anti-depressants, sedatives and muscle relaxers in Cachay’s system at the time of her death.
Brutally murdered: Sylvie Cachay, 33, was found strangled in a bathtub at the Soho Hotel in Manhattan on December 9, 2010
‘That combination of drugs could account thc pills for pain her falling asleep, losing consciousness, passing out and sinking under the water and ultimately dying,’ he said, according to the.
The information counters the findings of an autopsy that ruled her death a homicide by strangulation and drowning.
Party lifestyle: Brooks is on trial for the murder of his girlfriend at the trendy hotel in the Meatpacking District in 2010
Cachay, 33, was found half-clothed and face up in a bathtub at the Soho House hotel at 3 a.m.on December 9, 2010.
In the hours after Miss Cachay was found, Brooks, 27, gave several statements to New York police that could be used against him in court.
He told police that he had had left his girlfriend at the hotel to go out drinking the night of her death and that she was sleeping – not taking a bath – when he left.
Several minutes after he was seen leaving on the hotel’s surveillance cameras, guests began to complain about water leaking through the ceiling from the couple’s room upstairs.
It is unclear whether other statements he made after he was arrested – including asking an officer ‘How much could I get for something like this’ – will be allowed at trial.
Miss Cachay’s mother Sylvia told the Post: ‘We realize we are going to see justice, and I am sure New York justice is going to be in our favor.’
Miss Cachay, whose designs have been worn by a string of celebrities, was known to have a volatile relationship with Brooks, who was 25 at the time of her death.
According to investigators, she had red marks around her neck and a bite mark on her hand when her body was found.
It was later discovered that on the eve of her tragic death, Miss Cachay sent a message to Brooks with ‘F*** you’ written in the title field.
Beauty: Sylvie Cachay had a successful career as a designer and led a glamorous life in Manhattan when she was brutally killed
The expletive-laden email accused Brooks of stealing from her credit card and threatening to go to police, it has been claimed.
Brooks is the son of late Oscar-winning composer and alleged sex attacker Joseph Brooks.
‘The subject line was “F*** you,” and it said she was going to the police, and that’s relevant,’ prosecutor Jordan Arnold told a court as he argued that the District Attorney did nothing wrong in plundering Brooks’ email account for clues.
Justice Wittner agreed that it would be in the public interest to disclose the contents of his emails to a jury.
But Brooks’ defence lawyer Jeffrey Hoffman told the that the email is inadmissible, adding: ‘This is nothing more than a given feeling at a given moment that was different two moments before and two moments after.’
Awaiting trial: Nicholas Brooks, 27, the son of Oscar-winning composer Joseph Brooks, stands trial accused of murder
Celebrated designer: Miss Cahchay’s designs have been worn by a string of celebrities
On the night of her death, Miss Cachay and Brooks checked into the hotel after a fire in her apartment.Police allege Brooks left her there to die while he went to party.
Ms Cachay lived in an apartment in Manhattan’s West Village and had a membership at the Soho House, an elite club and hotel that has hosted such stars as Nicole Kidman, Victoria Beckham and Naomi Watts.
She made swimsuits for Victoria’s Secret, Tommy Hilfiger, Marc Jacobs and Syla, her own label.
Brooks’ father, Joseph, who won an Oscar for the 1977 hit ‘You Light Up My Life,’ committed suicide in 2011 amid multiple charges of sexual assault.
Grim find: Sylvie Cachay’s body is removed from Soho House hotel after its discovery in December 2010
Plush: Soho House Hotel is one of New York’s most exclusive members’ clubs known for its lavish bedrooms
He was charged with 91 counts of rape, sexual abuse, criminal sexual acts, assault, and other crimes.
However, he committed suicide before his case or his son’s could go to trial.The elder Brooks left no money to his children and was nearly broke when he died, the New York Post reported.
It’s unclear whether the proceeds of his biggest hit, which still rakes in royalties, will go to his son.
Brooks is facing 25 years to life in prison, if convicted.