A brand-new New Netflix documentary claims to have "closed the book" on the mysterious death of Elisa Lam.
Four-part series The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel examines the bizarre final moments of the 21-year-old Canadian student's life back in 2013.
Speaking to the Independent, director Joe Berlinger explained: "While we can’t know exactly what was going on in her mind that night, I really believe this closes the book on her case."
Take a look at the trailer for the documentary in the video below:He added:
"What I aim to do is look at a case holistically, look at the context socially and culturally, or with this series, at the physical location and environment, to examine how this story came to pass.
"There’s a moral responsibility on us as filmmakers to tell this story in the best way possible, because for the people involved, this is not just a story."
Although considered a model student throughout her formative years, Lam's behavior changed erratically after she enrolled at the University of British Columbia.
At the beginning of 2013, Lam suddenly decided to take an unexplained trip to California. She traveled alone by bus to Los Angeles, checking into the Cecil Hotel near Skid Row on January 26 – an establishment with a long and colorful history, reputed by many to be haunted.
Lam had contacted her parents every day while traveling. But on January 31, her messages ceased. Concerned, her parents David and Yinna Lam contacted the police and reported her as missing.
After learning she had been staying at the Cecil Hotel, police searched the premises but found no trace of Lam's whereabouts.
However, the case took a morbid turn on February 19 when guests at the Cecil complained of low water pressure in their facets and shower fittings. Some even complained about the blackish coloration of the water, its foul taste, and a mysterious smell.
In a tragic twist, maintenance workers discovered Lam's drowned and decomposing body floating within one of the hotel's four 1,000-gallon water tanks. Police and plumbers alike were baffled as to how Lam ended up there.
Watch the infamous surveillance camera footage of Lam in the video below:A toxicology report found no evidence that she'd been under the influence of narcotics, and an autopsy of her remains found no evidence of any sexual or physical assault.
Bizarrely, CCTV footage later emerged showing her behaving erratically by the hotel elevator. IN the footage, it appears as though she is arguing with someone before trying to hide. However, nobody else can be seen on camera.
The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel drops on Netflix today, February 10.
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