A second University of South Florida doctoral student remained missing as deputies searched near Tampa Bay.
TAMPA, Fla. — Zamil Limon, a 27-year-old University of South Florida doctoral student, was found dead Friday on the Howard Frankland Bridge after he and another graduate student disappeared more than a week ago, authorities said.
The discovery widened a missing persons case into a criminal investigation that now includes the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, USF police, dive teams and prosecutors. Limon’s roommate, Hisham Saleh Abugharbeih, 26, was arrested on preliminary charges, while Nahida Bristy, also 27, remained missing Friday. Officials said an autopsy would determine Limon’s cause and manner of death.
Limon and Bristy were last seen April 16 at separate locations in Tampa, authorities said. Limon, who studied geography, environmental science and policy, was last seen about 9 a.m. at his home on Avalon Heights Boulevard, an apartment complex near campus. Bristy, a chemical engineering doctoral student, was last seen about 10 a.m. at the Natural and Environmental Sciences Building on the USF campus. A family friend contacted USF police April 17 after being unable to reach either student. Investigators later said the case had become urgent because the disappearance was out of character. “We are still actively searching for Nahida,” Hillsborough County Chief Deputy Joseph Maurer said Friday.
Authorities said Limon’s remains were found Friday morning on the Howard Frankland Bridge, the major span that carries traffic over Tampa Bay between Tampa and St. Petersburg. Officials did not immediately say how long the body may have been there, whether the bridge was the original scene of the death or what evidence first led searchers to the area. Dive teams searched the bay near the bridge as deputies continued looking for Bristy. Maurer said investigators had no other suspects at that point. He also said Abugharbeih had spoken with detectives Thursday, ended that interview and was being questioned again after his arrest Friday morning.
The arrest came after deputies responded around 9 a.m. Friday to a domestic violence call at a home in the Lake Forest community, just north of the Tampa campus near Bruce B. Downs Boulevard and Lake Forest Drive. Officials said relatives were removed safely from the home before Abugharbeih barricaded himself inside and refused commands to come out. A SWAT team, drone, robot and crisis negotiators were called to the scene. Maurer said Abugharbeih came out peacefully with his hands up and was taken into custody. The sheriff’s office said the charges included domestic violence, battery, false imprisonment, tampering with evidence, failure to report a death and unlawfully moving a dead body.
Limon and Bristy were both from Bangladesh and were in the United States on student visas, officials said. Relatives and friends described them as serious students who stayed in close contact with family. A relative said they were a couple and had discussed marriage, though they were focused on finishing their degrees. Limon’s younger brother told a Tampa television station that Limon was working on a thesis involving generative AI and Florida’s shrinking wetlands. Bristy’s family said she had spoken with relatives on the day she vanished and that it was unusual for them not to hear from her. Officials said Bristy lived on campus and did not live with Limon or Abugharbeih.
University records showed Abugharbeih had attended USF from spring 2021 through spring 2023 and had pursued a bachelor’s degree in management, but he was not enrolled at the time of the investigation. Court records cited by authorities and news organizations showed prior misdemeanor cases, including battery and burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, that were later discontinued after he completed a diversion program. Records also showed two domestic violence petitions filed by a family member in 2023, with an injunction granted in one case and denied in the other. Officials did not describe those records as a motive in Limon’s death or Bristy’s disappearance.
USF President Moez Limayem said in a message to the university that investigators had described the case as an isolated situation that happened off campus and that there was no ongoing threat to the campus community. Limayem said university leaders had spoken with the families and friends of the students in recent days. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister called the case “deeply disturbing” and said it had shaken many people who had hoped both students would be found safe. Chronister said detectives would keep following facts, leads and evidence to determine what happened.
The next steps include the autopsy, a court appearance for Abugharbeih and the continued search for Bristy. Maurer said autopsy results were expected Saturday morning, and Abugharbeih was expected to make his first court appearance the same day. Investigators had not announced a homicide charge Friday, and several major questions remained unanswered, including how Limon died, where he died and where Bristy was last taken after leaving campus.
As of Friday evening, Bristy remained missing, Abugharbeih remained in custody and search teams were still focused on the area near the Howard Frankland Bridge. Authorities said the next major update was expected after the medical examiner’s findings Saturday morning.
Author note: Last updated April 24, 2026.