The Ukrainian OF model, who was found with multiple severe injuries at the side of a road in Dubai after going missing for ten days, is awake and speaking.
The 20-year-old, Maria Kovalchuk, disappeared after telling friends and relatives that she would be spending the night at an elite hotel party on March 9 earlier this year.
Trigger Warning: She was not heard from until the 19th of the same month, when she was found with multiple injuries, including broken limbs, a damaged spine, and missing teeth.
Highlights
- The 20-year-old was found with broken teeth, limbs and spine on a Dubai roadside.
- She has started speaking but does not remember her relatives.
- Her mother claims he has the names of the criminals.
Her mother, Anna, who flew from Norway and is currently keeping vigil at her recovering daughter's bedside, has since confirmed that Maria is speaking—only she does not recognize her relatives.
Maria’s attackers were not from Dubai
Image credits: marielouna
Talking to the Russian media, Anna said: “I know the names of the culprits, they are already on the prosecutor's list.”
A blogger named Tatyana Mozhegova took it a step further, when she claimed that the person responsible for Maria’s condition was a member of a wealthy local Arab family.
She also implicated men by the names of Michael Smith and Adam Collins, whom she said was part of the girl’s entourage, along with Said Al Hamadi, Said Al Fagadi, and a person known only as "Rashid."
Image credits: marielouna
Anna has since refuted this claim, calling it a lie and a grasp for relevance by Mozhegova.
“She's talking complete nonsense. It looks like someone is just trying to get publicity from the tragedy,” she told Russia’s AIF.
Those in the know have refused to share the names of the attackers
Image credits: Getty Images/Unsplash (Not the actual photo)
Anna went on to say the names of the perpetrators were with the local prosecutor, but did not surrender them to the outlet.
Bored Panda previously reported unnamed sources saying that the model had fallen afoul of a European criminal group known for luring in women with promises of money, only for them to be subjected to abuse and depravity.
Image credits: marielouna
“UAE citizens have nothing to do with it,” the individual said, also slamming the blogger's claims.
Like Maria’s mother, the source refrained from naming the suspects.
Police are saying that the OF model suffered a bad fall, but this does not explain her teeth in her handbag
Image credits: marielouna
Outing the culprits has not been a walk in the park for the Kovalchuks.
According to the Ukrainian online news outlet, Obozrevatel, the model has “serious memory problems” to the extent that she does not even recognize her family and friends.
Also, her recollection of the event leading up to her discovery in March, is patchy at best.
Image credits: marielouna
To exacerbate issues, local authorities are claiming that she gained unauthorized access to a construction site and fell–a theory that is intended to explain away the chocolate found in her mouth, her broken teeth in her handbag, and her broken legs, arms, and spine.
A woman who attended the same party and managed to escape, known only as Ksenia, reported loud screams coming from behind a closed door, followed by the sight of two men lugging away a large object in a rolled up carpet.
Image credits: marielouna
Perhaps as a nod to Mozhegova’s theory, Ksenia claimed that its organizer was a man who went by the name of Said.
Maria's injuries are so severe that she is still not able to sit up after three months in the hospital
Image credits: marielouna
Maria and Anna are still in Dubai, waiting until the victim is strong enough for the flight back to Europe.
At this point, the 20-year-old who has undergone numerous life saving operations and been in hospital more than three months, is not even able to sit upright.
Image credits: marielouna
Social media has since weighed in on the story with overwhelming outrage and support for the young woman.
Social media is raging
One netizen indicated that Maria’s case is not unique, saying: “There are so many stories similar to this from Dubai. Women getting trafficked, or killed after being invited to private parties.”
Image credits: marielouna
Another highlighted the local police’s cognitive dissonance when they sarcastically wrote: “I hate it when I fall and my teeth end up in my wallet.”
“Whatever this young girl does, there is never any excuse for this brutality. She is lucky to be alive, but her life has changed immeasurably now,” wrote one person, summing up the general sentiment.
