The Mendoza Olmos family is living every parent’s worst nightmare.
After days of fear and unanswered questions, everything collapsed when police found Camila Mendoza Olmos’ body just 100 yards from her home — so close she was almost safe.
Soon after, her family shared a brief but devastating message, speaking of a bright Texas teen taken too soon and the unbearable pain of knowing she was nearby the entire time.
The discovery has shaken the community. Parents are holding their children tighter. A once-safe neighborhood now feels permanently changed.
She was steps away from home — and still never made it back.
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Camila Mendoza Olmos’ family posts heartbreaking message after Texas teen’s body found 100 yards from home
Camila Mendoza Olmos’ grieving family said the teenager is “with the Good Lord” in a heartbreaking post after she was found dead in a field just 100 yards from her home.
Camila’s family wanted “to give a humble and heartfelt thank you to all the news reporters, police detectives, FBI, churches, friends, family, and many other communities for your support and prayers” during the frantic, days-long search for the 19-year-old, her aunt Nancy Olmos wrote on social media.
“Our beloved Camila Mendoza Olmos is now with the Good Lord.
Camila Mendoza Olmos was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on Tuesday.Facebook/Nancy Olmos
“We kindly ask that you please respect our pain and, most importantly, keep my cousin Rosario — Camila’s mom — and my nephew Carlos — Camila’s brother — in your prayers during this incredibly difficult time,” she added.
Olmos’ body was found beside a handgun near her home outside San Antonio, Texas, on Tuesday.
She had shot herself in the head, the medical examiner determined.
Officials believe she had been dead for five or six days when she was discovered.
A 9mm pistol belonging to one of her relatives was reported missing around the time of her disappearance, but it’s unclear if the firearm recovered at the scene is a match, according to police.
She is believed to have been showing symptoms of depression and thoughts of suicide after struggling with school, work and a relationship that had recently ended, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said.
Camila Mendoza Olmos and her mother, Rosario Olmos.Facebook/Jaidah Fuchs
Olmos’ aunt shared a baby photo of Camila in a touching social media post.Facebook/Nancy Olmos
Olmos was studying to be an orthodontist, family members said.Instagram/camila
Olmos “was a young person going through a very tough time in her life,” he said.
Olmos, who studied Northwest Vista College with the goal of being an orthodontist, had last been seen around 7 a.m. Christmas Eve rummaging through her car, footage shows.
She vanished with her car keys and license, but her cellphone was found on her bed.
Her disappearance sparked a massive search, including by her ex-boyfriend, Nathan Gonzales, who described Olmos as an exceptionally “loving person” in an interview with Fox San Antonio.
The search dragged on without any leads as police exhausted all possibilities including human trafficking, warning at one point that she could be in “imminent danger.”
They also considered that Olmos, a US-Mexican dual citizen, may have gone or been taken across the border into Mexico, prompting the FBI and Department of Homeland Security to join the investigation.
Olmos was found in a field just 100 yards from her home in Bexar County.Facebook/Silvia Estrella
Olmos had last been seen leaving her home Christmas Eve morning.Instagram/camila
A joint team of Bexar County sheriff’s deputies and FBI agents discovered the body beside the handgun around 4:45 p.m. Tuesday, the San Antonio Express reported.
Teams had already combed through the field earlier in the search but decided to try again because of the tall grass and heavy brush, Salazar said.
