Kabary Salem, a 56-year-old man from Staten Island, New York, has been charged with the murder of his daughter, Ola Salem, in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. The charges come nearly five years after the 29-year-old's body was found in Bloomingdale Park, New York, in October 2019.
According to the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office, Kabary Salem is facing charges of homicide and strangulation. The autopsy results showed that Ola's cause of death was asphyxia, and she had injuries consistent with being strangled, such as blunt force trauma to the head.
ABC27 reports that Kabary Salem and his daughter had traveled to Pennsylvania two days before her body was found. They had recently co-purchased a restaurant in Palmyra, Pennsylvania, and were there to do some work. Kabary Salem told the New York City Police Department that he and Ola had an argument, after which she left, and he claimed that was the last time he saw her.
However, investigators found inconsistencies in Kabary Salem's story. The rental car he used was equipped with a GPS tracker, which showed that he had traveled to Staten Island and the park where Ola's body was found early in the morning before returning to Palmyra. He also made a stop at a Lowe's in Palmyra for a shovel before he went to Staten Island.
DNA evidence found on Ola's body during the autopsy matched Kabary Salem's DNA, obtained from a cup he discarded after the interview with NYPD. Investigators were also told by the NY Medical Examiner that Ola had been dead for at least eight hours before her body was dumped, which matched the time period of the GPS records.
Kabary Salem fled to the Middle East four days after being interviewed by NYPD in 2019 and was arrested in December 2020. He is currently being held without bail in Lebanon County Prison and awaits arraignment scheduled for September 5, 2024.