Canadian prostitute linked to Google exec’s death detained by ICE

A prostitute who injected a Google executive with a lethal dose of heroin in 2013 while aboard his yacht in Santa Cruz harbor and spent more than two years in jail was taken into custody by federal immigration agents as soon as she was released, officials said Monday.

Manslaughter suspect Alix Tichelman enters the courtroom for her arraignment by Judge Timothy Volkman, in Santa Cruz Co. Superior court on Wednesday July 16, 2014, in Santa Cruz, Calif.
© Michael Macor, The Chronicle Manslaughter suspect Alix Tichelman enters the courtroom for her arraignment by Judge Timothy Volkman, in Santa Cruz Co. Superior court on Wednesday July 16, 2014, in Santa Cruz, Calif.
Her sentence served, Alix Tichelman — who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of 51-year-old Forrest Hayes — was released by the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office around 5 a.m. on Wednesday, said Sgt. Chris Clark, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office.

U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agents had requested on March 27 that the jail hold Tichelman, a Folsom resident with Canadian citizenship, for 48 hours beyond her scheduled Wednesday release date, Clark said. Citing state law and department policy, Clark said the sheriff’s office declined to do so.

James Schwab, a spokesman for ICE, said he couldn’t comment.

ICE agents waiting outside the jail in the predawn hours came into the building to detain Tichelman, Clark said. He said the sheriff’s office followed “all policies and procedures” regarding its communications with the federal agents.

Tichelman, a heroin addict who captured the public’s attention with her tales of serving as a high-end prostitute with customers including 200 executives across the nation, was sentenced to six years in county jail after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter and administering illicit drugs.

Hayes, a prominent Google executive, husband and father of five who initially connected with Tichelman online, died after he invited her onto his yacht in the Santa Cruz harbor on Nov. 23, 2013.

Video obtained by investigators allegedly depicts Tichelman injecting Hayes with a syringe of heroin, stepping over the slumping man, then polishing off a glass of wine before closing the boat’s blinds to hide the body. Her lawyer has insisted the death was a tragic accident.


Michael Bodley is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mbodley@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @michael_bodley