A Texas mother is demanding answers after her 19-year-old daughter was found dead near a downtown Austin apartment complex, just hours after attending a college football tailgate party.
Brianna Aguilera, a sophomore at Texas A&M University, was discovered outside an apartment building around 1 a.m. Saturday morning.
The discovery came shortly after she had attended a tailgate for Texas A&M’s football game against the University of Texas.
Her mother, Stephanie Rodriguez, has expressed frustration over what she describes as inconsistent information from the Austin Police Department.
Investigators have indicated they believe Aguilera died by suicide, telling Rodriguez that her daughter had fallen from 17 floors.
Rodriguez has raised serious concerns about the investigation.
“There are a lot of inconsistencies with the story,” Rodriguez told KSAT.
“He told me they said she jumped, and then he told me that the friends said they didn’t know her whereabouts.”
The grieving mother has firmly rejected the suicide theory. She emphasized that her daughter was not suicidal and had been looking forward to her future career as a lawyer.
Rodriguez first became alarmed when her daughter failed to answer her phone after Friday’s game. She noticed Aguilera’s phone was pinging in Austin and immediately contacted police.
However, law enforcement instructed her to wait 24 hours before filing a missing persons report.
Officers later located Aguilera’s cellphone on Saturday.
Rodriguez was not informed until 4 p.m. Saturday, her daughter’s body was in the morgue.
The delay in notification has added to the mother’s anguish and questions about the investigation.
The mother believes there may be more to the story than what authorities have revealed.
She pointed out that approximately 15 people were inside the apartment where the incident occurred.
Rodriguez has alleged that a physical altercation took place.
“There was a fight that happened between my daughter and another girl, and they were all staying in the same apartment that I have actual text messages of, and the detective just disregarded them,” Rodriguez said.
Despite the mother’s concerns, Austin police have stated they are not investigating the death as a homicide.
Authorities have indicated the investigation has not uncovered any suspicious details.
The Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office will be responsible for determining the official cause of death.
The results of that examination are still pending.
Aguilera was originally from Laredo, where she attended United High School.
According to a GoFundMe page organized for her family, she was a “seasoned cheerleader” who graduated with magna cum laude honors.
The aspiring lawyer had been pursuing her education at The Bush School of Government & Public Service at Texas A&M.
She was working toward her dream of becoming an attorney.
A fundraising campaign was launched to help the family during this difficult time.
“The details surrounding what happened next remain unclear, and her mother is still awaiting answers,” the fundraiser stated.
The GoFundMe has raised more than $28,000, exceeding its original goal of $12,000 by more than double.
The outpouring of support demonstrates the impact Aguilera had on her community.
Rodriguez expressed gratitude for the support in a Monday message to donors.
“Im so grateful for your love and support at this moment. The unexpected loss of my brie brie has been a tremendous challenge, but I find strength in the outpouring of kindness,” Rodriguez said.
She added a poignant reflection on her loss. “I’ve experienced every parent’s worst fear, but I’m comforted by the knowledge that my brie brie touched so many hearts.”
Texas A&M University has not yet issued a public statement regarding the death of the student.
