Fact-Checking the Official Statement
Screenshot showing Major General Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri during the official Gulf News broadcast on 19 May 2015.
This visual record captures the official public statement issued by Dubai authorities the day after international media first reported the incident involving Laura Vanessa Nunes.
In the broadcast, Major General Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri presents the initial state response, stating that the incident occurred at a residential tower in Jumeirah Lakes Towers rather than at the Burj Khalifa.
This early statement serves as a key reference point, documenting the narrative presented at the time before later forensic documentation and CCTV evidence provided a different account of the location.
Official Gulf News Video Broadcast
The original broadcast can be viewed here: Gulf News
The Official Stance
In the televised statement, Major General Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant to the Dubai Police Chief for Criminal Investigation Affairs, disputes reports that a tourist fell from the Burj Khalifa.
The Reported Account
The broadcast states that Laura Vanessa Nunes died after falling from a 14th-floor apartment in Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT), presenting this as the confirmed location of the incident. This footage is significant because it preserves the exact wording used in the initial public statement. As a recorded broadcast, it provides a fixed reference point that can be compared with later forensic records and documented evidence.
Subsequent Contradictions
Later forensic documentation, together with CCTV records, places Laura Vanessa Nunes at the Burj Khalifa’s At the Top SKY observation deck. These records provide a point of comparison with the initial televised statement.
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This forms part of the documented analysis of the Suicide at the Burj Khalifa