TAMPA, Fla. — Human remains have been found of one of the two missing USF students, and a suspect has been charged with their deaths, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) said Saturday.
The suspect, 26-year-old Hisham Abugharbieh, is being charged with two counts of first-degree murder with a weapon (premeditated) in the deaths of Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, the two previously missing University of South Florida-Tampa students, HCSO said Saturday morning.
Watch Blake Phillips' report:
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said additional evidence was presented, resulting in the further murder charges presented Saturday, but they will not comment on the specific findings to protect the integrity of the investigation.
Abugharbieh made his first appearance in court on Saturday morning and is being held without bond until his next detention hearing on Tuesday, April 28 at 9 a.m.
Meanwhile, the nonprofit search-and-rescue group We Are The Essentials spent Saturday searching for evidence in areas they believe Bristy might be, including Sand Key in Clearwater and the suspect's house in Tampa.
"We're not here to interfere with law enforcement, but we're here to make sure that, you know, she has not been missed and been left somewhere," Billy Lane said.
Lane said their team is looking in places they believe law enforcement has already looked, with the goal of providing extra eyes in the search.
"The community needs this closure. USF needs this closure. The students need this closure. The family needs this closure," Lane said.
As of late Friday afternoon, HCSO's marine and dive teams were searching for Bristy's body near the Howard Frankland Bridge.
Officers encountered Abugharbieh as they responded to a report of domestic violence at his family's home, just north of the campus, and were able to remove his relatives to safety. But then he barricaded himself inside and refused to come out. A SWAT team responded, along with a drone, a robot and crisis negotiators, before Abugarbieh came out with his hands up, apparently wearing nothing but a blue towel.
WATCH press conference with HCSO:
Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said human remains were found on the Howard Frankland Bridge and have been identified as missing USF grad student Zamil Limon.
Abugharbieh was Limon's roommate.
He was initially arrested on multiple other charges, including domestic violence, simple battery, false imprisonment, tampering with evidence, failure to report a death, and moving a dead body.
Watch arrest video of Abugharbieh, Limon's roommate
Hisham Abugharbieh is expected to have his first court appearance on April 25, according to the 13th Judicial Circuit.
Tampa Bay 28 is showing Abugharbieh's mugshot due to the nature of the case as officials continue their search for Nahida S. Bristy.
On the morning of April 24, the entrance and exit of the Lake Forest Community at the intersection of Bruce B. Downs and Lake Forest Drive was shut down due to a police investigation.
“We saw it was all barricaded and I tried to go through a cone and I got stopped by the cops and they weren’t too happy. I said I’m trying to get home, and they said you’re not going to be able to get home for a long time,” said neighbor Gary Margosian.
Bristy and Limon were both international doctoral students from Bangladesh who went missing the morning of April 16 in Tampa.
Limon was reportedly last seen at his apartment at Avalon Heights around 9 a.m., and Bristy was last seen around 10 a.m. at the Natural and Environmental Science building on the USF campus, where flyers about the missing students are now posted.
On April 17, around 5 p.m., a family friend notified USFPD after being unable to contact both people, and a missing person report was filed.
On April 23, HCSO elevated the status of their case to endangered.
Neighbors are reacting with fear and uncertainty, especially those living at Avalon Heights apartments.
“Living here at these apartments where the guy that disappeared lived and also the people that surround us may not be USF students. So that is also scary,” said Maria Ponce DeLeon.
Abugharbieh had been a USF student but was not currently enrolled. University records showed he had attended the school from Spring 2021 through Spring 2023, and had pursued a BS in Management, a university spokeswoman said.
Abugharbieh also had several previous arrests, the sheriff’s office said. He was charged with battery and burglary of an unoccupied dwelling in September 2023, and with battery that May — both classified in court records as misdemeanors. Court records show Abugharbieh may have entered into a diversion program. A phone call to his lawyer in that case was not immediately returned.
Hillsborough County Court records also showed two domestic violence petitions filed by a family member in 2023. A judge granted an injunction in one case and denied the other petition. He also was accused of traffic violations.
If you have any information, you can also contact the HCSO at 813-247-8200.
This is a developing story. Tampa Bay 28 will provide more details as they become available.
Tampa Bay 28 Mugshot Policy
When a mugshot is used
If the person is still on the loose and a potential threat to the community; if there is a good chance that showing the suspect would help identify additional victims or otherwise protect the public from a serious threat or if the crime or the suspect is of such a significant note that seeing them in a mugshot is in the greater public interest.
Using previous mugshots
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This policy started in early 2021
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