ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — What started as a kidnapping case out of Perinton has grown into a complex legal case involving multiple suspects, competing narratives and possible international concerns.
Four people are currently suspects in the alleged kidnapping case, which originated in Perinton on May 9. Two suspects are out on bond, while two others remain in jail.
Legal experts say investigations like this can be complicated.
“It’s a confusing case because there are so many moving parts and so many different versions as to, you know, what’s going on. It’s going to take some time to resolve that,” said attorney Greg Rinckey, with Tully Rinckey PLLC.
The defense argues the kidnapping was actually a rescue, but the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office says otherwise. Prosecutors claimed in court Monday that all suspects could be flight risks, potentially wanting to take the children involved to Yemen.
Rinckey said those are the kinds of questions that would need to be answered to justify high bail.
“Are they related to the people that they claim that they were rescuing? And, you know, what was their intent? Did they have tickets, you know, purchased to take them out of the country? I mean, these are all going to be things that they’re looking at as evidence,” he said.
The defense continues to argue there is substantial proof the family was in danger and needed to be rescued from the Perinton home.
Child Protective Services became involved, expressing concerns that the mother might be harming the children. CPS initially reported the mother was not cooperating, but later said she complied. According to Omar Saleh’s attorney, the mother does not speak English and gave guardianship to Saleh.
News 8 asked Rinckey whether a language barrier could have been one of the issues.
“I think it’s possible that, you know, the language barrier, the fact that they’re, you know, authorities and potentially they could take her children — I mean, that’s a very scary situation,” he said.
Rinckey said with such a conflicting case, it could take a while to resolve and to answer the central question.
“The facts, I think, still remain to be seen as to what was going on in that household and why did these people seemingly need to be rescued,” he said.
News 8 has reached out to multiple agencies with alleged involvement in the case. U.S. Marshals confirmed to News 8 that they have been involved in the case since Saturday night. News 8 is still waiting to hear back from other agencies.
News 8 also reached out to the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office for further comment. The office declined.
