A university student plunged to her death from a 17th-floor balcony just weeks after sharing blissful photographs with her college boyfriend, with police later revealing she had a heated phone argument with him minutes before the fall.
A Poignant Final Photograph
Brianna Aguilera, a 19-year-old Texas A&M student, beamed in a photograph taken just 29 days before her death. She was dressed as Glinda from the Wizard of Oz, clutching a sparkly wand and wearing a shiny crown. Her boyfriend, Aldo Sanchez, 20, smiled broadly beside her in a green and gold jacket, posing as Prince Fiyero from Wicked.
The image, a snapshot from happier times, now carries a tragic weight. On November 29, Brianna's body was discovered outside a student apartment building in Austin's West Campus area at 12.46am. She had travelled to the city for her college's football game against the University of Texas.
Police Evidence Points to Suicide
On Thursday, December 5, Austin Police held a news conference to address what they called "inaccurate information" circulating about the case. Police Chief Lisa Davis stated the department does not commonly speak publicly about suicides but felt compelled to do so to prevent further harm.
Detective Robert Marshall revealed crucial digital evidence from Brianna's phone. A deleted digital suicide note dated Tuesday, November 25, was found, written to specific people in her life. Furthermore, on the evening of her death, she had sent texts to friends indicating suicidal thoughts.
Detective Marshall detailed the final moments. Brianna had been asked to leave an Austin Rugby Club tailgate at 10pm due to intoxication. She later borrowed a friend's phone after losing her own. At 12.43am, she argued on the phone with her boyfriend, Aldo Sanchez, who was not in Austin. Witnesses heard the argument, which was confirmed by Sanchez. Just three minutes later, she fell from the balcony.
"Between all the witness statements, all of the video evidence and all of the digital evidence collected, at no time did any evidence point to this being anything of a criminal nature," Detective Marshall stated.
A Mother's Fierce Dispute
Brianna's mother, Stephanie Rodriguez, 38, vehemently disputes the police's suicide ruling. She raised the alarm when she could not contact her daughter that Friday evening and saw her phone was set to 'Do Not Disturb'—something she claims Brianna would never do.
"My daughter would not jump 17 stories from a building and to be labelling this as a suicide is insane," Rodriguez insisted on Facebook earlier this week. She alleged her daughter had argued with another girl at the party and suggested friends were involved in a cover-up, noting the apartment's resident had suddenly vacated.
Rodriguez told People magazine she believed someone might have shoved her daughter, who was 5ft 2in, from the balcony, which had a railing at least 3ft 6in high. She also speculated Brianna, who was "thin and frail," might have fallen asleep and been thrown over by panicked friends.
The tragedy ended what appeared to be a romantic year for the couple, both from Laredo. Social media posts showed them at New York Yankees games, tailgates, and a romantic restaurant gesture in August where Sanchez asked, "Will you be my girlfriend?" with a bouquet of roses.
Brianna, a student at Texas A&M's Bush School of Government and Public Service, aspired to be a lawyer. A mass will be held in her honour at St Patrick's Catholic Church in Laredo on December 9. The Sanchez family declined to comment when contacted.
