Naman Shrestha
In the episode titled ‘Who Killed Aileen Seiden in Room 15′ of CBS’ ’48 Hours,’ the viewers are provided with a detailed account of the brutal killing of 31-year-old Aileen Seiden in the spring of 2018. As the investigators dug deeper into the case, they came across a shocking revelation that led them right to the killers. The episode also features in-depth interviews with the victim’s family and friends, who talk about the aftermath and the impact the tragedy had on them.
Aileen Seiden Was Killed in a Motel, But Her Body Was Found on the Side of a Highway Nearby
Aileen Seiden was brought into the world in the late 1980s by a seemingly loving set of parents. Apart from her parents, she spent quite a lot of time with her two sisters, Francesca and Deborah Seiden, while growing up. From early on, she went through a lot of ups and downs in her life, mainly starting from the time she was in fourth grade when her mother passed away due to cancer. Thanks to the love and support of Francesca, who raised her since she was 14 years old, Aileen was able to move ahead in life. Despite the huge loss, she managed to find her footing and grew into a compassionate woman who loved animals. Another tragedy befell the family when Aileen’s father, Frank M. Seiden, who was a renowned businessman in Miami, also departed from the world during her freshman year.
After completing her education and becoming an independent woman, Aileen began working at Christina Araujo’s used car dealership. She also crossed paths with Zachary Abell, who served as president of the dealership. After some time, Aileen also began living with them in North Miami. On April 22, Aileen’s beaten and bruised body was discovered just off Highway 98 in Eastpoint, Florida. Within the next 24 hours, the police also found a bloody crime scene in room 15 of the nearby Sportsman’s Lodge Motel. It turned out that the two scenes were connected as Aileen’s DNA matched with the blood found in the motel room. After collecting all the clues and evidence from the crime scenes, the detectives launched a homicide investigation to get to the bottom of the case.
Aileen Seiden Was Reportedly a Part of a Throuple
Upon positively identifying Aileen Seiden’s body and finding out that she stayed at the Sportsman’s Lodge Motel with a couple of other individuals, the authorities dug deeper into other details, including with whom she shared her room. Soon, they learned that she had checked into room 15 of the motel with Zachary Abell and Christina Araujo on April 21, 2018. As the detectives investigated the dynamics of the trio’s relationship, they found out that Aileen had been dating both of them since 2017. Throughout the course of their relationship, she was allegedly physically abused by Zachary quite regularly.
Despite the constant arguments and physical altercations with him, Aileen refused to go to the authorities for help due to the fact that Araujo’s father was an integral part of one of Florida’s sheriff departments, and she had threatened to cause harm to Aileen multiple times. Thus, the throuple decided to go on a road trip to Dallas but made a stop in Eastpoint, Florida, where they checked into the aforementioned motel. The next thing that the detectives did was watch the surveillance footage, which showed that the trio went to a local restaurant to eat dinner and returned to their room.
An Alleged Altercation Led to the Demise of Aileen Seiden in the Motel Room
The following day, on April 22, 2018, the investigators believed that Aileen got into an altercation with the other two partners in the motel room, which led to her murder at the hands of Zachary and Christina. After the killing, they allegedly disposed of the 31-year-old woman’s body on the side of the highway in Eastpoint, where her body would be discovered later. Upon returning to Davie, the killers told about the murder to one of their friends, who ended up informing the law enforcement officers about the same. Thus, a couple of days after the brutal murder, on the evening of April 24, the police arrested Zachary and Christina in the town of Davie and charged them with the killing of Aileen Seiden. Both of them faced charges of one count of tampering with evidence and second-degree murder.
Even after multiple pieces of evidence connecting them to the case, the two killers maintained their innocence for several years that followed. Nearly five years after the murder, in May 2023, Christina agreed to a plea deal and admitted to having a hand in the beating of Aileen and helping her co-conspirator, Zachary, to dispose of the body on the side of the road. In exchange for a reduced sentence, she worked with the prosecutors and testified against the other killer.
In April 2024, Zachary Abell stood on trial for the homicide of Aileen Seiden. During the trial, as per Christina’s plea deal, she testified against him and helped the prosecutors convince the jury that he was guilty. After deliberation, the jury returned with a guilty verdict and convicted him of second-degree murder, tampering with physical evidence, and accessory after the fact of second-degree murder. As a result, he was sentenced to life in prison. Meanwhile, on June 7, 2024, Christina Araujo received a 25-year imprisonment sentence for her role in the killing of Aileen in April 2018.
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