DA To Hold Press Conference Friday To Address Alleged Evidence Tampering In Patrick Kane Case
(CBS) Erie County (N.Y.) district attorney Frank Sedita III will hold a press conference Friday in Buffalo to address the alleged evidence tampering in the Patrick Kane rape case.
The press conference will take place at 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT.
This news conference will come after a wild Wednesday brought unforseen twists and turns in the case. Around the lunch hour, Thomas Eoannou -- the attorney for the woman who has accused Kane of sexual assault in the early morning hours of Aug. 2 -- said that the rape kit evidence bag that's so critical to the case has been tampered with. An evidence bag that Eoannou said was authenticated by multiple agencies was anonymously left on the doorstep of the accuser's mother's home and discovered Tuesday afternoon.
It led Eoannou to express serious concerns about how the evidence and case is being handled, as well as call for an independent investigation into that matter.
"I have my grave concerns as to what's going on here," Eoannou said. "That's why we went public with it. That's why we're asking for an independent investigation by a separate law enforcement agency. Something seriously has gone amiss."
Later Wednesday afternoon, Erie County commissioner of Central Police Services John Glascott denied that any evidence had been mishandled.
"All evidence related to this case that was given to Erie County Central Police Services by the Town Of Hamburg Police Department is accounted for and remains in its original packaging in the possession of Erie County Central Police Services," Glascott said in a statement. "This includes the evidence in the rape kit and the packaging itself.
"This evidence has been analyzed and reports of that analysis sent to the appropriate agencies."
Sedita told media outlets Wednesday that the claims of evidence tampering will be properly investigated.
Kane hasn't been charged in the case.
