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Sarai Sierra Wake Planned For Valentine's Day; Husband Of Mom Killed In Istanbul Wrote About Rocky Relationship

Husband Of Mom Killed In Turkey Wrote Cryptically About Marriage
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FILE - In this image from files provided by the family, Sarai Sierra is shown in an undated family photo, in New York. The New York City woman who went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul was found dead on Saturday and police detained nine people for questioning in connection with her case, Turkey's state-run news agency said. Sarai Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, was last heard from on Jan. 21, the day she was due to board her flight back home. Her disappearance attracted a lot of interest in Turkey, where such disappearance of foreign tourists are rare and Istanbul police had set up a special unit to find her. (AP Photo/Family Photo, File)

The wake for a New York mom who was killed in Turkey is scheduled for Valentine's Day, which would have been the 15th anniversary of her engagement to her husband, the Daily News reported.

As cops in Istanbul search for who bludgeoned Sarai Sierra to death earlier this month, questions are arising about why the married mother of two traveled solo.

Initial reports said that Sierra arranged the trip to Istanbul, Amsterdam and Munich to indulge her interest in photography. It was her first trip overseas.

Instagram messages posted by her husband Steven Sierra, however, suggested that their marriage had hit a rocky patch in recent weeks, the Daily Mail reported.

'Don't cheat in relationship[s]," Sierra's 40-year-old husband wrote on Dec. 28. "If you are not happy, then just leave."

Later that day he wrote: "A real relationship is where you can tell each other everything & anything. No secrets, no lies."

On Jan. 7, the day his wife departed for Turkey, he wrote: "Good relationship[s] don't just happen. They take time, patience and two people who truly want to be together."

He spoke to her by phone for the last time on Jan. 14. Three days later, he posted on Instagram: "'People are to be LOVED. Things are to be USED. The reason why the world is in chaos is because THINGS are being LOVED and PEOPLE are being used.'

Sierra, 33, was supposed to fly home to Staten Island on Jan. 21, but never checked in for her flight. Her husband and brother flew to Istanbul to help look for her.

On Feb. 2, her body was found near an ancient wall in Istanbul. Her iPad and phone were missing.

During the trip, Sierra met with friends she'd made online who shared her interest in photography. In Amsterdam, she stayed with a man she'd befriended online.

In Istanbul, she met with a Turkish man identified as Taylan K. the day before she was due to return to the United States. Reports in Turkish media have said the two had sex in a bathroom in a bar, but in a statement put out by Taylan K.'s lawyer, he said the two met for tea. Police have said he is not a suspect.

A source allegedly familiar with the FBI's investigation told the New York Post that Sierra hung out with a "criminal element" during her time in Istanbul.

Sierra's husband, speaking to the New York Times downplayed his Instagram messages as well as the reports of infidelity in their 14-year marriage.

"I just put those up to just encourage other marriages," Steven Sierra said. "It may seem coincidental."

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Before You Go

Sarai Sierra
Sarai Sierra(01 of22)
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Sarai Sierra was killed while traveling alone in Istanbul. The married mother of two left Staten Island on Jan. 7 and was expected to fly home on Jan. 21, but she never checked in for her flight. Her body was found with a severe head trauma on Feb. 2. (credit:AP)
Sarai Sierra (02 of22)
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Sarai Sierra(03 of22)
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Sarai Sierra (04 of22)
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Steven Sierra, Silas Sierra, Sion Sierra(05 of22)
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Steven Sierra accompanies is two sons, Silas Sierra, 9, and Sion, 11, after the funeral for his wife and their mother, Sarai Sierra, at the Christian Pentecostal Church, in the Staten Island borough of New York, Friday, Feb. 15, 2013. The 33-year-old mother of two was killed while vacationing alone in Turkey. Her body was found in Istanbul, 12 days after she disappeared. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) (credit:AP)
Maggie Rodriguez(06 of22)
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Maggie Rodriguez, who was supposed to to travel to Turkey with her friend Sarai Sierra, attends the funeral for Sierra, at the Christian Pentecostal Church, in the Staten Island borough of New York, Friday, Feb. 15, 2013. The 33-year-old mother of two was killed while vacationing alone in Turkey. Her body was found in Istanbul, 12 days after she disappeared. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) (credit:AP)
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A man holds her photo at the left as people carry the casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra from the Surp Yerrortutyun church to an ambulances in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home, New York, on Thursday.(AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(08 of22)
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People carry the casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra from the Surp Yerrortutyun church to an ambulances in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home, New York, on Thursday.(AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(09 of22)
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People carry the casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra from the Surp Yerrortutyun church to an ambulances in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home, New York, on Thursday. (AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(10 of22)
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People carry the casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra from the Surp Yerrortutyun church to an ambulances in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home, New York, on Thursday. (AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(11 of22)
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People carry the casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra from the Surp Yerrortutyun church to an ambulances in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home, New York, on Thursday. (AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(12 of22)
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People carry the casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra from the Surp Yerrortutyun church to an ambulances in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home, New York, on Thursday. (AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(13 of22)
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People carry the casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra from the Surp Yerrortutyun church to an ambulances in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home, New York, on Thursday.(AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(14 of22)
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The casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra seen inside the Surp Yerrortutyun church in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing in Istanbul, and her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home to New York, on upcoming Thursday. (AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
(15 of22)
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The casket of murdered New York woman Sarai Sierra seen inside the Surp Yerrortutyun church in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing in Istanbul, and her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city historical walls. Her body is expected to be sent back home to New York, on upcoming Thursday. (AP Photo ) (credit:AP)
TURKEY-US-CRIME-SIERRA(16 of22)
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People carry the coffin of US tourist Sarai Sierra, 33, at Beyoglu in Istanbul on February 6, 2013 whose remains will be flown out of Turkey on February 7. Sierra went missing on January 21, three weeks after she arrived in Istanbul and a day before she was expected to return home. Reports state that Sarai Sierra who was on holiday alone in Istanbul was killed by at least one fatal blow to the head, Turkish officials said. AFP PHOTO/STR (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
TURKEY-US-CRIME-SIERRA(17 of22)
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People carry the coffin of US tourist Sarai Sierra, 33, at Beyoglu in Istanbul on February 6, 2013 whose remains will be flown out of Turkey on February 7. Sierra went missing on January 21, three weeks after she arrived in Istanbul and a day before she was expected to return home. Reports state that Sarai Sierra who was on holiday alone in Istanbul was killed by at least one fatal blow to the head, Turkish officials said. AFP PHOTO/STR (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
Betzaida Jimenez(18 of22)
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Betzaida Jimenez, mother of 33-year-old Sarai Sierra who was found dead on Saturday in Turkey, pauses during a news conference at a friend's home in Staten Island, Monday, Feb. 4, 2013, in New York. Sierra went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul on Jan. 21, the day she was due to board her flight back home. Congressman Michael Grimm is at left. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) (credit:AP)
Betzaida Jimenez, Dennis Jimenez, Michael Grimm(19 of22)
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Betzaida Jimenez, mother of 33-year-old Sarai Sierra who was found dead on Saturday in Turkey, speaks during a news conference at a friend's home in Staten Island alongside Congressman Michael Grimm, left, and her husband Dennis on Monday Feb. 4, 2013, in New York. The New York City woman went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul on Jan. 21, the day she was due to board her flight back home. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) (credit:AP)
Magdalena Rodriguez(20 of22)
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Magdalena Rodriguez, close friend of 33-year-old Sarai Sierra who was found dead on Saturday in Turkey, attends a news conference at a friend's home in Staten Island, Monday, Feb. 4, 2013, in New York. Rodriguez had planned to travel with Sierra who went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul on Jan. 21, the day she was due to board her flight back home. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) (credit:AP)
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Police forensics search for missing New York City woman Sarai Sierra near the remnants of some ancient city walls in low-income district of Sarayburnu in Istanbul, Turkey, late Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013. Turkey's state-run news agency said that she has been found dead in Istanbul and police have detained nine people in connection with the case. Sierra, a 33-year-old mother of two, went missing while vacationing alone in Istanbul. Her body was discovered late Saturday amid the city walls.(AP Photo) (credit:AP)
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