Brianna Aguilera has always been a passionate supporter of Texas football. Raised in Laredo, she proudly roots for the United High School Longhorns.
As Brie transitions into college life, she swaps her allegiance from burnt orange to the maroon and white of Texas A&M. At the university, she dedicates her time at the Bush School, diligently working toward a degree in political science.
Eagerly anticipating the day she’ll receive her Aggie ring, Brie is also preparing for the LSAT, with plans to dive straight into law school post-graduation. Her academic journey is already impressive, boasting a perfect 4.0 GPA.
In the early hours, at 12:47 a.m., Austin Police were alerted by a good Samaritan about an unconscious woman found outside the 21 Rio high-rise. Sadly, by 12:57 a.m., the woman was pronounced dead, and initial reports suggest she may have fallen from the building.
Stephanie, driven by a mother’s intuition, becomes instantly concerned when her daughter’s phone switches to “do not disturb.” This occurs despite earlier assurances from her daughter that she had safely arrived at the tailgate party, with a promise to keep her phone and location status active for safety reasons.
Frantic with worry, Stephanie makes repeated calls to her daughter’s phone, contacts the police, and reaches out to nearby hospitals, but to no avail. Such silence is atypical for the responsible honor student, prompting the family to become increasingly alarmed.
It’s not until 4 p.m. that afternoon that Stephanie Rodriguez is told her 19-year-old daughter, Brianna Aguilera, is dead. Officers first tell her Brie jumped, then say her friends don’t know how Brie ended up 17 stories below them.
Austin PD recovers Brianna’s phone, though they haven’t said where, returning the device to her grieving mother. Stephanie says her daughter’s texts indicate she got in a fight with one of the other girls staying at the Rio 21 apartment Friday night.
When she highlights the texts to an officer, he tells her they are not investigating Brianna’s death as a homicide, and the texts does not change the course of the investigation.
Stephanie Rodriguez does not accept Austin PD’s assumption. Brianna committed suicide. Stephanie, a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, insists Brianna was excited to attend the tailgate and had a long list of future plans. Her daughter was also so afraid of heights, she wouldn’t ride roller coasters on her cheer team’s senior trip to Disney World.
Stephanie believes one of the 14 “friends” Brianna was with that night knows what happened to her daughter.
Joining Nancy Grace today:
Additional Guests
- Stephanie Rodriguez – Brianna Aguilera’s Mother
- Josephine Nava – Grandmother of Brianna Aguilera
- Sydney Sumner – Investigative Reporter, “Crime Stories”
“Crime Stories with Nancy Grace” on Fox Nation is also a national radio show on SiriusXM channel 111, airing for two hours daily starting at 12 p.m. EST. You can also subscribe and download the daily podcasts at iHeart Podcasts.
[Feature Photo: Handout]
