Student Zamil Limon Found Dead, Female Friend Still Missing
By Goldsea Staff | 24 Apr, 2026

The two Bangladeshi students, aged 27, were students at the University of Southern Florida when they went missing on April 16.

Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy were reported missing April 16, 2025. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office Photo)

The death of Zamil Limon, a 27-year-old doctoral student at the University of South Florida, has quickly evolved from a troubling missing-persons case into a deeply unsettling criminal investigation—one that’s left a campus community shaken and a family grieving while still searching for answers.

Limon, a Bangladeshi international student pursuing a PhD in geography, environmental science, and policy, was reported missing in mid-April 2026. He had last been seen on the morning of April 16 at his Tampa residence. Roughly an hour later, fellow doctoral student Nahida Bristy—also 27 and from Bangladesh—was last seen on campus at the university’s Natural and Environmental Sciences Building. When neither responded to calls or messages, a mutual acquaintance reported them missing the next day. 

From the outset, family members insisted something was wrong. Both students were described as disciplined, academically focused, and closely connected to their families—hardly the type to disappear voluntarily. 

As investigators dug deeper, concern escalated. Authorities soon reclassified the case from a standard missing-person inquiry to one involving “endangered” individuals, signaling fears of potential harm. 

A critical and tragic breakthrough came on April 24, when Limon’s body was discovered on the Howard Frankland Bridge in Tampa Bay.  The discovery confirmed the worst fears of those following the case, but it also raised new questions about how a promising young academic’s life had ended so abruptly.

At the same time, law enforcement arrested Limon’s roommate, Hisham Saleh Abugharbeih, after a tense standoff involving SWAT officers. He now faces multiple charges, including failure to report a death, unlawfully moving a body, tampering with evidence, and domestic violence-related offenses. Authorities have not yet disclosed a clear motive, and the exact cause of Limon’s death remains under investigation pending autopsy results.

What makes the case even more disturbing is the unresolved disappearance of Nahida Bristy. Despite ongoing search efforts, she remains missing, and investigators continue to appeal to the public for information. 

The relationship between Limon and Bristy adds another layer of poignancy. By most accounts, the two shared a close personal bond. Some family members said they were romantically involved or had been in the past, while others indicated they were still emotionally connected and even discussing a possible future together.  Their relationship, whether defined as current or evolving, appeared grounded in mutual respect and shared ambition.

Friends and relatives have emphasized that both were deeply committed to their academic work and long-term goals. They were building lives far from home, navigating the pressures of graduate study while maintaining ties to families in Bangladesh. That context has only intensified the sense of loss and confusion surrounding the case.

What began as a disappearance has now become a grim investigation into violence, secrecy, and unanswered questions. With one life lost and another still unaccounted for, the tragedy of Zamil Limon—and the uncertainty surrounding Nahida Bristy—continues to unfold, leaving behind a community searching not just for justice, but for clarity.