Former Cecil Hotel manager hits back at claims elevator footage was edited

Netflix's latest thriller Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel follows the chilling 2013 disappearance of 21-year-old Elisa Lam. The unusual case left police perplexed for months, as the only substantial evidence they had to go on was a CCTV recording of Lam in one of the Cecil Hotel’s elevators before she vanished.

Conspiracy theorists are now unpacking all the slight hiccups from the lift footage shown in the four-part documentary. Viewers were shown a recording that seemed slightly off—the video appeared to have been altered to fit the story’s narrative, and fans are now questioning the time stamp that had been completely blurred out. 

Netflix attempted to get ahead of any doubts with the “official footage,” but it still wasn’t enough for some fans. One commenter took to Twitter saying: “That 4-minute scene in the elevator—spooky...and how convenient no cameras on her floor.”

• How many murders were committed at the Cecil Hotel?

One of the detectives working on the case in 2013 addressed the allegations that the video had been tampered with—he went on to categorically deny that any of the evidence had been altered in any way. It was suggested that video footage had to be slowed down so it's easier to analyze.

Former manager Amy Price denied the allegations, mentioning that any claims were “absolutely false.” Price has now retired, but she did sit down with E! News in a tell-all interview. “I was a little surprised to hear that. I really hadn’t heard that before the documentary. I’m not surprised people feel that way based on the momentum that a lot of the sleuths have.”

Price added: “We cooperated with the police 100 percent... I mean, from the moment they arrived. There wasn't even a chance to even look at the tapes myself. I just handed them over. I provided a room for them to review them, and that’s exactly what they did.”

• Is the Cecil Hotel still open and can you actually stay there?

Twitter has erupted over Price’s “suspicious” inclusion as fans hit back at her interview, saying: “Hotel Manager says ‘I've never got used to that’ and yet still she is working there, telling a story about all the crimes without any sign of guilt/shame. It's spooky tho”.

While another said: “And she seems strange! Did you notice that she barely blinks in the interview? She is one creepy lady.”