Police say the mysterious death of Texas A&M University student Brianna Aguilera has been ruled a suicide and that a suicide note was found on her phone reporting her previous comments about self-harm.
Austin Police Detective Robert Marshall said the investigation began at 12:46 a.m. Saturday when officers arrived at an Austin apartment complex and found Aguilera lying on the ground with apparent trauma from falling from a high building.
Cameras show Aguilera arriving at the apartment complex just after 11pm on Friday and heading to the apartment on the 17thth Marshall said at a news conference Thursday. The video shows that “at 12:30 a.m. on November 29, a large group of friends left the same apartment, leaving only Brianna and three other girls in the apartment,” he said.
– PHOTOS: This undated file photo shows Brianna Aguilera.
Marshall said Aguilera was at the tailgate for the Texas A&M-Texas football game earlier Friday when she was “intoxicated and asked to leave.”
Aguilera told her friends she had lost her phone, and when they arrived at the apartment Friday night, she borrowed one to call her boyfriend, he said.
Marshall said witnesses heard her arguing with her boyfriend on the phone. That call occurred between 12:43 and 12:44 a.m., two minutes before the 911 call, he said.
College student Brianna Aguilera dies mysteriously after Texas football tailgating accident, family says
When police later found Aguilera’s missing phone, they found a “deleted digital suicide note dated Tuesday, November 25 of this year, addressed to specific people in her life,” Marshall said.
“Brianna made suicidal comments to friends as early as October of this year,” he said. “This continued into the night of her death and in the evening she engaged in some self-harming behavior and sent text messages to another friend indicating that she was having suicidal thoughts.”
Marshall stressed that there was no evidence in the investigation to suggest foul play, adding that “every friend and witness during the investigation was very candid and open.”
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Aguilera’s family told local media earlier this week that the beloved college student was not suicidal and planned to pursue a career in law.
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said at a news conference, “I understand that grief and the need for answers can bring up strong emotions and many questions. But sometimes the truth doesn’t provide the answers we hope for, and this is the case.”
Davis said her “heart aches” for Aguilera’s parents.
“I have three daughters and a son, and I can’t imagine the pain,” Davis said.
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, free and confidential help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please call or text National Lifeline 988.
