Roommate Arrested After Missing USF Doctoral Student Found Dead In Tampa
A roommate was arrested Friday after one of two missing University of South Florida doctoral students was found dead in Tampa, authorities said.
Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office took a person into custody after a barricade at a home in the Lake Forest community near USF. Officials briefly closed the neighborhood's entrances and exits during the operation. Authorities say one body has been recovered in connection with the disappearances and more details will be released at a news conference.
The missing students are 27-year-olds Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, both from Bangladesh. They were last seen April 16; investigators say Limon was seen about 9 a.m. at his Tampa residence and Bristy about 10 a.m. on the USF Tampa campus. USF police say investigators do not believe federal immigration officers detained the pair.
Family members, friends and lab colleagues had flagged the disappearances as highly unusual. They said the couple kept regular contact and had even marked work from home on a shared calendar the day they vanished. Relatives said both had flights booked to Bangladesh for the summer and had discussed a future together while focusing on their doctoral work.
Earlier reports emphasized search efforts and missing-person notices; later coverage from CBS News and Fox News reported the arrest and a recovered body, shifting the story into a homicide probe. Most homicides are committed by someone known to the victim, a pattern that gives added weight to an arrest of someone who lived with the students. Local reporters and social media users expressed growing concern and questioned whether cases involving students of color get equal attention.
đ Relevant Data
In 2025, the number of homicides in Hillsborough County, Florida, decreased by 55% to 22 from 49 in 2024.
Crime Down in Hillsborough County for Fourth Consecutive Year â Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office
From 1993 to 2010, between 73% and 79% of homicides in the U.S. were committed by offenders known to the victim, according to Bureau of Justice Statistics analysis of FBI data.
Violent Victimization Committed by Strangers, 1993-2010 â Bureau of Justice Statistics
đ Key Facts
- The missing students are Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, both 27 and originally from Bangladesh; the pair were a couple who had discussed marriage.
- Both were last seen on April 16: Limon was last seen around 9 a.m. at his Tampa residence and Bristy about 10 a.m. on the USF Tampa campus (reports cite a student apartment and a campus science building).
- Limon was a doctoral student studying generative AI applications in environmental science (including Florida wetlands) and was scheduled to present his doctoral thesis; Bristy was a chemical engineering doctoral student.
- Family and friends â who say the disappearances are "very unusual" and out of character â reported the pair kept daily contact, had flights booked to Bangladesh for the summer, and a lab colleague said Limon marked "work from home" on a shared Outlook calendar the day they vanished.
- USF Police and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office have been actively investigating, following leads and conducting searches across Hillsborough and Pinellas counties; USF police said investigators do not believe the pair were detained by federal immigration officers.
- Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office elevated Limon and Bristy to endangered status based on newly developed information and briefly shut down entrances/exits to the Lake Forest community during law enforcement activity tied to the case.
- During the Lake Forest operation, officers took a barricaded person connected to the disappearance into custody; officials initially said the person in custody was not one of the missing students.
- Authorities later reported that one of the two missing students has been found dead and that a roommate has been arrested and taken into custody in connection with the case; further details were expected at a news conference.
đ° Source Timeline (7)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Police say one of the two missing University of South Florida doctoral students has been found dead.
- Authorities state that a roommate of the students has been arrested and taken into custody.
- The arrest links the person in custody directly to the victim as a roommate, clarifying their relationship.
- Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office closed the entrance and exit of the Lake Forest community on Friday for an operation tied to the missing USF students.
- A barricaded person linked to the disappearance of Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy was taken into custody after the neighborhood lockdown.
- Authorities report that one body has been found in connection with the disappearance of the two doctoral students, with further details to be given at a news conference.
- Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office says a person connected to the disappearance is in custody after a barricade at a home in the Lake Forest Community near USF.
- Officials state the person in custody is not one of the missing students and decline to say if they are a suspect.
- The sheriff's office briefly shut down the entrance and exit of the Lake Forest Community due to law enforcement activity.
- HCSO elevated the status of Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy to endangered on Thursday based on newly developed information, without detailing that information.
- Confirms both students, 27-year-olds Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, were last seen April 16 on the USF Tampa campus, one at a student apartment and one at a campus science building.
- States that a family friend first contacted authorities on Friday after being unable to reach the couple.
- USF police spokesman Larry McKinnon says investigators do not believe the pair were detained by federal immigration officers.
- Adds details on Limon's research using generative AI to study Florida wetlands and notes the couple had discussed marriage but were focused on completing their degrees.
- CBS video piece confirms families have now spoken publicly on camera and stress that the disappearances are 'very unusual' for both students.
- Reiterates Tampa police are actively searching and that neither student has been seen since April 16.
- Adds visual and emotional context from family interviews but no new concrete investigative details beyond prior timeline reporting.
- Names of the missing students are Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, both 27, and both from Bangladesh.
- USF Police specify last known times and places: Limon last seen around 9 a.m. April 16 at his Tampa residence; Bristy last seen about 10 a.m. April 16 on the USF Tampa campus.
- Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office says detectives are actively following leads and conducting searches in multiple locations across Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.
- Limon studies AI in environmental science and was scheduled to present his doctoral thesis this week; Bristy is a chemical engineering doctoral student.
- Family and friends describe daily contact patterns, say both already had flights booked to Bangladesh for summer break, and call the disappearances "extremely suspicious" and out of character.
- A lab friend says Limon had put "work from home" on a shared Outlook calendar for the day they vanished, and relatives say the pair had discussed a future together but prioritized studies.