The family of a 19-year-old Texas A&M student who fell to her death from a high-rise apartment building is disputing preliminary police findings of suicide, alleging that investigators are ignoring evidence of a physical altercation preceding the fall.
Brianna Aguilera, a sophomore cheerleader and aspiring lawyer, was found dead around 1 a.m. Saturday outside an apartment complex near the University of Texas campus. While Austin Police Department officials have stated the death is not currently being investigated as a homicide, Aguilera’s mother, Stephanie Rodriguez, contends that her daughter’s death is the result of foul play that is being overlooked by authorities.
According to a report by TMZ, investigators believe Aguilera jumped from the 17th floor of the building following the Texas A&M vs. Texas rivalry game. However, Rodriguez insists her daughter was not suicidal and had been eagerly planning her future in law.
The mother’s allegations of a “cover-up” center on several key discrepancies she claims police have dismissed:
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Uninvestigated Altercation: Rodriguez told KSAT-TV she has possession of text messages detailing a fight between Aguilera and another female in the apartment shortly before the fall. She alleges that detectives have “disregarded” this evidence.
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Witnesses in the Room: The family asserts that approximately 15 people were present in the apartment at the time of the incident. Rodriguez believes it is impossible for that many people to be present without someone witnessing the events leading to the fall.
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Communication Gaps: Rodriguez noted that while her daughter’s phone continued to ping in Austin, she stopped answering calls hours before her body was discovered. The family was not notified of the death until 4 p.m. on Saturday, roughly 15 hours after Aguilera’s body was found.
“There was a fight that happened between my daughter and another girl… and the detective just disregarded them,” Rodriguez said in an interview with local media.
The Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office is currently determining the official cause of death. As of Monday, the Austin Police Department maintained that there was no immediate evidence of foul play, leaving the grieving family to rely on their own findings and public appeals for answers.
Aguilera was a student at the Bush School of Government & Public Service and a graduate of United High School in Laredo, Texas.
Flip the pages for the last known photos of Brianna Aguilera.
