The mother of a Texas A&M University student is desperately searching for clarity after her daughter, Brianna Aguilera, was found dead near campus in Austin just hours after attending a football game
Aguilera, a 19-year-old sophomore, was discovered unresponsive outside a student apartment complex around 1 a.m. on Saturday morning. Her death is currently under investigation, with the Austin Police Department stating that the case is not being treated as a homicide.
Aguilera’s mother, Stephanie Rodriguez, has publicly disputed the police’s early findings, which suggested Aguilera likely died by suicide after falling from 17 floors.
Rodriguez told reporters she has received inconsistent answers from the Austin Police Department and firmly believes her daughter was not suicidal, noting Aguilera was an aspiring lawyer looking forward to her future.
The heartbroken mother recalled calling the police after her daughter did not answer her phone after Friday’s game, but was instructed to wait 24 hours before filing a missing persons report.
Officers later found Aguilera’s cellphone on Saturday. However, Rodriguez was not informed until 4 p.m. that day that her daughter was in the morgue. Rodriguez maintained that the circumstances are suspicious and believes something more sinister could have been at play leading up to the fatal fall.
“There are a lot of inconsistencies with the story,” Rodriguez said. “He told me they said she jumped, and then he told me that the friends said they didn’t know her whereabouts.”
She also accused the detective of disregarding text messages she possessed that indicated a fight had occurred between her daughter and another girl who were both staying in the same apartment.
She maintained that one of the 15 people inside the apartment must know something about her daughter’s death.
Austin police maintain that the investigation has not revealed any suspicious details and that the death is not being investigated as a homicide.
The official cause of death will be determined by the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office, a process which can take several months.
Aguilera, who hailed from Laredo, was pursuing her dream of becoming a lawyer at The Bush School of Government & Public Service at Texas A&M.
A GoFundMe organized for her loved ones, which described her as a “seasoned cheerleader” and honors graduate, has since raised over $28,000, well over its initial goal.
In a message to supporters, Rodriguez expressed her gratitude and grief: “The unexpected loss of my brie brie has been a tremendous challenge, but I find strength in the outpouring of kindness. I’ve experienced every parent’s worst fear, but I’m comforted by the knowledge that my brie brie touched so many hearts.”
