48-year-old Joe Finley is considered a “person of interest” in the death of his wife after being questioned by the LAPD over the weekend.
Laura Finley‘s body was found partially clothed, lying in the stairwell of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel on Saturday morning. Her time of death is listed as 8:25 am.
According to Joe, he and Laura, 49, “went out partying” Friday night after taking the drug ecstasy. After returning to their hotel room, he claims he heard Laura get up around 3am and leave the room. He thought she had gone to get ice.
When he woke up and Laura wasn’t there, he called security and asked them to page her over the public address system.
“She was supposed to get us breakfast because I had to get up and get in line , Finley said. “She didn’t come back so I just left and got in line and figured she was still out.”
He then left for his 2pm audtion.
“I didn’t think anything of it.”
According to Finley, police stopped him on his way to the audition and showed him a picture of his wife’s face with injuries. Although police didn’t tell him Laura was dead, he says he assumed, at that point, that she was.
Although he admits he believed his wife was dead, he went on to the audtion after being questioned for several hours by police.
Finley was arrested for possession of ecstasy after the audition, and was taken into custody where he was questioned again. He was released on $10,000 bond Sunday morning.
In an interview with TMZ, Finley says he believes his wife was murdered. “somebody threw her of that railing,” he said.
According to Finley, police told him someone went to the front desk and requested a key to their room around 1:30 am. “100% this was not an accident,” he added.
Laura Finley’s death is under investigation.