New Details Emerge About Rice University Murder-Suicide Victim

The alleged shooter who killed Rice University student Andrea Rodriguez Avila and himself wrote a note before the tragic murder-suicide that left the campus shaken on the first day of classes.
“In general terms, it was a lot about their relationship, and then obviously they were having a troubled relationship at this time,” university police chief Clemente Rodriguez said at a press conference on Monday.
Avila, 21, and the unidentified man, 22, were in a “dating relationship,” according to police.
Classes resumed at Rice University on Wednesday, two days after the horrific incident. The Houston university canceled classes on Tuesday.
University police found junior Avila dead in her dorm room at Jones College on Monday during a wellness check. The wellness check was requested by a family member who had not heard from Avila.
A man who was not a member of the university community was also found dead in the room from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The man has not been identified yet, but officials said he could possibly be from Florida.
Avila was originally from Nottingham, Maryland. She transferred to Rice University last spring from the Community College of Baltimore County.
“Andrea’s family arrived in Houston Tuesday morning and is receiving support from the university’s leadership team during this profoundly challenging time,” a Rice University spokesperson told Newsweek. “They have requested privacy as they mourn their loss but are deeply appreciative of the outpouring of thoughts and prayers from the community.”
In community college, Avila was an active member of several organizations, including the college-wide student programming board, Multicultural Student Association, Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society and the First Year Experience Mentor program.
She was majoring in political science and pre-law at Rice University. She was a deputy parliamentarian at the Rice Student Association, an academic advisor at Jones College and a member of the university’s Honor Council.
She was also the events chair of the school’s Transfer Student Association.
“Since transferring to Rice this spring, she became a beloved member of the transfer student community and was excited to take on the role of TSA’s Event Chair this year,” the association’s president, Alex Cantin, said in a statement on Instagram. “Her passion and empathy for this community touched everyone who had the privilege of working with her.”
Rice University president Reginald DesRoches called the incident “heartbreaking” and “devastating.”
“It is with deep sadness and shock that I write to you on what should have been a day filled with promise and new beginnings,” DesRoches said in a statement. “Instead, we find ourselves mourning the loss of one of our own in a tragic event that has shaken our campus to its core.”
Houston Police Department is leading the investigation, which is being treated as a murder-suicide. Anyone with information is urged to contact Houston Police Department’s Homicide Division at 713-308-3600.
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