Cause of Death Revealed for Fla. Doctoral Student Found on Bridge Days After He Disappeared

Zamil Limon’s body was found on a bridge with his wrists and ankle bound, per Florida authorities

Zamil Limon.Credit : 

University of South Florida Police Department

NEED TO KNOW

Zamil Limon’s body was found on a bridge after a week-long search in Florida
Limon’s roommate Hisham Abugharbieh is facing murder charges
Nahida Bristy has not been located but authorities are working to identify a second set of remains found where Limon’s body was recovered last week

Authorities in Florida have released the cause of death for 27-year-old Zamil Limon, whose disappearance earlier this month launched a days-long search effort.

Limon, along with fellow doctoral student Nahida Bristy, also 27, was reported missing on April 17 from Tampa, Fla.

His body was found on the Howard Frankland Bridge on Friday, April 24, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said at the time.

On the same day, police announced the arrest of Limon’s roommate Hisham Abugharbieh, who has since been charged with two counts of murder.

An autopsy conducted by the Pinellas County Medical Examiner’s Office determined Limon’s manner of death to be homicide, and the cause of his death to be “multiple sharp force injuries,” according to a criminal report affidavit obtained by PEOPLE.

His body was found with his wrists and ankles bound, per the autopsy.

The investigation revealed a large amount of blood located at the residence where Limon and Abugharbieh lived with a third roommate, per the affidavit, which alleged investigators found blood trailing from the entry of the apartment, through the kitchen, to Abugharbieh’s room.

Nahida S. Bristy.University of South Florida Police Department

As of the filing of this report, Bristy has not been found. On Sunday evening, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office announced they found remains on the interstate where the Howard Frankland Bridge is located.

The remains were sent to the Pinellas County Medical Examiner’s Office for identification.

Zamil Limon (left); and Nahida S. Bristy.Zamil Limon/Facebook; Nahida S. Bristy/Facebook

Abugharbieh has been charged with two counts of first-degree premeditated murder, according to court records reviewed by PEOPLE. He has also been charged with tampering with evidence and false imprisonment, per the sheriff’s office.

Online court records do not show plea information. His attorney declined to comment when contacted by PEOPLE.

TIMELINE: Murders of missing USF students Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy

Zamil Limon’s remains have been found. Nahida Bristy is still listed as missing, though investigators believe she is also dead. Here’s a timeline of the case so far.

Investigators are still working to identify a second set of human remains found near the Howard Frankland Bridge —  the same area where the body of missing USF doctoral student Zamil Limon was recovered Friday.

USF doctoral student Nahida Bristy is still listed as missing and endangered, though based on evidence, investigators said they believe she is also dead.

Limon’s roommate, Hisham Abugharbieh, has been arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder in connection to their deaths.

As we await further developments in the case, here’s a timeline of events in the University of South Florida students’ disappearance.

USF missing students timeline

Thursday, April 16 – Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy are last seen alive

Zamil Limon, a USF student pursuing a doctoral degree in geography, environmental science & policy, is last seen at 9 a.m. at his home on Avalon Heights Boulevard in Tampa.

Nahida Bristy, a USF student pursuing a doctoral degree in chemical engineering, is last seen at 10 a.m. at the NES Building on campus.

Friday, April 17 – Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy are reported missing

At approximately 4:50 p.m. on April 17, a family friend notifies the University of South Florida Police Department after they were unable to contact Zamil Limon or Nahida Bristy.

Missing person reports are initiated, and both students are entered into FCIC/NCIC missing persons’ databases.

Tuesday, April 21 – USF police announce students’ disappearance

USF police announce that they’re searching for Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, both 27 years old, as they ask the public for help.

Thursday, April 23 – Deputies search Sand Key Park in Clearwater

A dive team from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is seen searching the water at Sand Key Park in Clearwater. Pinellas County deputies are seen taking a paper bag from the scene into a Crime Scene Investigation vehicle.

The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office confirms its forensic unit was called to assist in a search related to the missing USF students.

6:15 a.m. Friday, April 24 – Zamil Limon’s remains recovered from Howard Frankland Bridge

Several northbound lanes of the Howard Frankland Bridge are shut down for hours as authorities recover what is later confirmed to be the body of Zamil Limon in “heavy-duty utility trash bags.”

9 a.m. Friday, April 24 – Deputies respond to domestic violence call at family home of Hisham Abugharbieh

Hillsborough County deputies respond to a domestic violence call in the Lake Forest neighborhood in Tampa, located about a mile away from the University of South Florida campus. Deputies are aware this is the family home of 26-year-old Hisham Abugharbieh, Zamil Limon’s roommate.

Deputies safely remove his family from the home, but Abugharbieh is refusing to leave, according to Chief Deputy Joseph Maurer. A SWAT team is called just after 10:30 a.m.

11:42 a.m. Friday, April 24 – Hisham Abugharbieh taken into custody

Video shows Hisham Abugharbieh exiting the home peacefully and being taken into custody by SWAT officers.

12:53 a.m. Saturday, April 25 – Nahida Bristy’s brother believes she’s dead

The brother of missing USF graduate student Nahida Bristy tells 10 Tampa Bay News reporter Chris Hurst that investigators called the family in Bangladesh late Friday night to say they believe she is dead because of “the volume of blood” found at the shared apartment of Zamil Limon, and the suspect in their killings, Hisham Abugharbieh.

That brother, Zahid Hasan Pranto, says the family was told that her body may never be found and may have been dismembered.

6:30 a.m. Saturday, April 25 – Hisham Abugharbieh charged with 2 counts of first-degree murder

Hisham Abugharbieh, 26, faces two counts of murder in the first degree with a weapon (premeditated) in the deaths of Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy.

He is being held in a Hillsborough County Jail without bond.

Court documents reveal he used ChatGPT to ask questions, such as “what happens if a human is put in a garbage bag and thrown in a dumpster,” before the USF students were reported missing.

8:55 p.m. Sunday, April 26 – Human remains found by Howard Frankland Bridge

Deputies with both the Hillsborough County and Pinellas County sheriff’s offices recover human remains from the waterways near the Howard Frankland Bridge, in the area of Interstate 275 and 4th Street North.

The Pinellas County Medical Examiner’s Office is working to identify the remains.

Credit: 10 Tampa Bay News
Marine units with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office search near the Howard Frankland Bridge for a missing USF student, as seen on April 26, 2026.