Investigators probe twins' shootings

US investigators remain baffled over a bizarre case in which twin sisters from
Australia were mysteriously found at a shooting range with gunshot wounds to the
head.
They are trying to determine if it was a shootout, a failed murder-suicide or a
suicide pact, while investigating why the 29-year-old sisters came to the US on
cultural exchange visas.
Complicating matters is the fact that investigators have had difficulty determining
which sister died because they look so much alike. One sister was killed, and the
other was upgraded on Wednesday from critical to serious condition.
Authorities said the sisters were in the same lane at the Family Shooting Centre
south of Denver and had at least two small-caliber pistols in their stall. Shooters
at the range line up behind a wooden wall and shoot at targets through an opening
that resembles a window, Arapahoe County sheriff's Captain Louie Perea said.
Surveillance video at the range captured the sisters falling out of the stall about
a half-second apart, with patrons quickly reacting, Perea said.
At least two shots were fired, Perea said. He declined to release further details,
citing the ongoing investigation.
No suicide note was found and a search of the twins' luggage at a nearby hotel
revealed nothing about what happened, Perea said. There was no apparent indication
of a dispute between the sisters, or any indication they were shot by somebody else.
No suspects were being sought.
"We want to be open-minded and make sure we're doing a thorough investigation,"
Perea said. "We're still trying to track the days leading up to the incident."
Perea said the sisters had visited the shooting range at Cherry Creek State Park in
Aurora at least twice before the fatal shooting.
Investigators initially couldn't determine which woman had died. But they now
believe they know, said Dr Kelly Lear-Kaul, a forensic pathologist and deputy with
the Arapahoe County Coroner's Office.
They were working with the Australian consulate in Los Angeles to obtain
fingerprints or dental records to positively identify the two. Perea said the US
Immigration and Customs Enforcement had also been contacted because the two
submitted fingerprints for their visas.
Authorities won't release either sister's name until they have been positively
identified, Perea said.
Perea said authorities attempted to interview the surviving twin after her condition
was upgraded, "but she was still heavily medicated".
"The interview was ineffective. We won't try to interview her until early
(Thursday) morning," he added.
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement the twins
were from Victoria. The Australian consulate in Los Angeles was working closely with
Colorado authorities, said Scott Bolitho of the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC
Both women were in the United States on cultural exchange visas, with one sister
arriving in the US on August 19 and the other on September 7. One sister was due to
return to Australia on Tuesday, Perea said.
It's not clear what the women were doing in the United States. Perea said no one has
come forward to say they knew the sisters, acknowledging that they haven't been
publicly identified yet.
Perea said the family was arranging on Wednesday to travel to the United States,
backing away from an earlier statement that the family was en route. During a brief
conversation with investigators, family members shed no light on what may have
happened, Perea said.
"We didn't get into specifics. Obviously they're mourning the loss of one daughter
and the wounding of another," he said.



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