Hillsborough County sheriff to give update on USF student murders | How to stream live

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister will give an update at 11 a.m. Friday on the investigation into the murders of Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy.

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister will give an update Friday morning on the investigation into the murders of two University of South Florida students.

The sheriff is set to discuss new developments in the case and what investigators have learned about the timeline of events that led up to Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy’s deaths.

Chronister will speak at 11 a.m. at the Sheriff’s Operation Center in Tampa. You can watch it live on the free 10 Tampa Bay News streaming app.

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Sheriff Chronsiter’s update comes as the second set of remains found near the Howard Frankland Bridge is believed to be Nahida Bristy. Zamil Limon’s remains were found in the same area on Friday, April 24.

Both bodies were discovered in a similar manner, inside a trash bag and with multiple stab wounds.

Zamil’s roommate, Hisham Abugharbieh, has been arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Zamil and Nahida.

Based on searches Abugharbieh reportedly made in the days leading up to the murders — including “What happens if a human has a put in a black garbage bag and thrown in a dumpster?” — investigators are looking into whether ChatGPT played a role in the crimes.

The investigation into the tragic deaths of University of South Florida doctoral students Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy has reached a critical juncture following a startling revelation regarding the final vocal contact made by the victims. While digital messages and physical marks on the ground have provided a grim framework for the case, a new testimony from a family member has introduced a chilling psychological dimension to the timeline. According to this relative, Zamil Limon made a brief, unexpected phone call on the morning of his disappearance, but the voice on the other end of the line was unrecognizable. The family member reported that “his voice sounded completely different that morning,” described as strained, hollow, and devoid of the characteristic warmth and intellectual clarity Zamil was known for. This testimony has led investigators to scrutinize the call logs with newfound intensity, uncovering a specific 23-second gap that has fundamentally altered their perception of the suspect, Hisham Saleh Abugharbieh.

This 23-second discrepancy in the call log is now being treated as a “black box” of potential evidence. Investigators are exploring the hypothesis that this gap represents a moment of extreme duress where the phone was no longer in Zamil’s control, or where he was being actively coerced into speaking. The “different” voice described by the family member could be attributed to the physical effects of a struggle or the psychological trauma of being held against his will. If the call was interrupted or if there was a period of silence where only background noise could be heard, those 23 seconds might contain the sounds of the environment where Zamil was being held, providing a definitive link to the suspect’s residence or vehicle.

The shift in how detectives view Hisham Saleh Abugharbieh stems from the synchronization of this call gap with his known movements. Analysts are working under the theory that the 23-second silence aligns perfectly with a period of high activity captured by nearby sensors or traffic cameras. If Abugharbieh was in the immediate presence of Zamil during that “different” phone call, the gap might represent the moment the suspect intervened to end the communication. This would move the case beyond circumstantial evidence of a roommate dispute and into the realm of a calculated, controlled abduction. The realization that the suspect may have been listening to—or even directing—Zamil’s final words to his family has added a layer of predatory coldness to the charges of first-degree murder.

Another darker possibility being examined is the use of technology to mask or alter voices. Given the high level of technical expertise shared by the students involved in this case, forensic teams are investigating whether the “different” voice was the result of a digital filter or a recording played over the line to buy the perpetrator more time. If the 23-second gap was a technical glitch caused by such an intervention, it would demonstrate a level of premeditation that shifts the motive toward a much more complex and targeted execution. This breakthrough has refocused the investigation on the intersection of human testimony and digital forensics, where a single perceived change in tone has unraveled a carefully constructed alibi.

The emotional impact of this news on the USF campus is profound, as students grapple with the idea that Zamil’s last contact with his loved ones was marked by such terror. The image of a family member listening to a voice they barely recognized, followed by a sudden, 23-second void, has become a haunting centerpiece of the community’s grief. As the legal team prepares for the trial of Hisham Saleh Abugharbieh, these 23 seconds of silence have become the loudest evidence in the room, speaking volumes about the final moments of a life cut short. The search for the truth continues to delve into the spaces between the data, seeking justice for two scholars whose voices were silenced far too soon.