No video of Kenneka Jenkins entering freezer where she was found dead, hotel says
CHICAGO -- There's a reason the public hasn't seen surveillance video of Kenneka Jenkins walking into the hotel freezer where her body was found earlier this month.
It doesn't exist, a spokesperson for the Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare Hotel & Conference Center tells CBS Chicago.
More specifically, there is no video camera trained on the freezer in the hotel kitchen in Rosemont, Illinois, where Jenkins' body was found Sept. 10.
The information came as attorneys for Jenkins' survivors toured the hotel Tuesday.
Jenkins, 19, went to a party at the hotel Sept. 8 with friends but was reported missing overnight. Her body was found about 24 hours later, and police have told family members it appears Jenkins inadvertently caused her own death by getting trapped inside.
Conspiracy theories have circulated on social media, with the Rosemont Police Department the focus of criticisms. On Tuesday, friends and family members held another demonstration outside the hotel.
"I want to see her literally, actually walking into this freezer," Tereasa Martin, Jenkins' mother, said last week.
But according to the hotel, that won't happen, since there is no such video.
Video timecodes in clips released last week indicate Jenkins roamed the hotel for more than an hour.
First, Jenkins is seen walking with friends. There's a time gap, and hours later she's seen her by herself.
At one point, she stumbles out of an elevator. Later, she repeatedly hits the wall walking down a hallway.
Family attorneys have questioned the effectiveness of hotel officials in helping Jenkins or her family once the woman's disappearance was reported.
On Tuesday, attorney Larry Rogers Jr. toured the hotel for about an hour. A hotel spokesperson says Rogers took pictures inside, asked questions and walked in all of the areas that video shows Jenkins walking.
Autopsy and toxicology results have yet to be released.
Rosemont police say the case is a death investigation and is a top priority for the department.