Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
ABC 20/20 revisits the 2012 murder of University of Florida freshman Christian Aguilar by his friend Pedro Bravo. The upcoming episode titled “Killer on Campus” will air on the network this Friday, March 1, 2024, at 9 p.m. ET.
Oxygen True Crime reported that Aguilar, 18, went missing on September 20, 2012. After not hearing from him, his girlfriend, Erika Friman, filed a missing persons report. Authorities learned that Aguilar’s friend Pedro Bravo was the last person to have seen the missing teen alive. They also learned that Friman and Bravo had dated during their senior year in high school. However, Bravo was upset over losing her, even suicidal, Friman told ABC. Hence, Friman and Aguilar decided to keep their relationship secret.
Investigators eventually found incriminating evidence after searching Bravo’s car and house. They arrested him on September 28 for Christian Aguilar’s murder, reported Oxygen. Moreover, partially buried decomposing remains found by hunters months later were matched to Aguilar using DNA and dental records. Authorities believed he devised a plan to win Friman back and remove Aguilar out of the way.
In August 2014, the case against Pedro Bravo resulted in a murder conviction. Following this, he received a life sentence without the possibility of parole, per The U.S. Sun.
Was Christian Aguilar ever found?
According to WUFT, on October 12, 2012, a group of hunters found Christian Aguilar’s skeletal remains. The discovery was made in a shallow grave on the grounds of Gulf Hammock Hunting Club in Levy County 22 days after he disappeared on September 20. Oxygen reported that authorities found clothing in the area that matched with Aguilar. They also used DNA from a hip joint and dental records to confirm the victim’s identity.
Before the discovery, investigators had arrested Aguilar’s friend Pedro Bravo in connection with the disappearance. Bravo was the last person to have seen the 18-year-old alive. Bravo claimed that they had gone to grab a bite the day before Aguilar went missing. The two then went to Best Buy to get a Kanye West CD.
Oxygen’s report stated that Bravo told police, “On the way back from Best Buy he picked up a hitchhiker,” said Detective Randy Roberts, of the Gainesville Police Department. He described the man to be in his 50s or 60s with gray hair. The hitchhiker was allegedly fiddling with duct tape while sitting in the backseat.
According to Pedro Bravo’s account, he and Christian Aguilar allegedly argued after the hitchhiker got out. Bravo claimed that Aguilar wanted to get off the vehicle. For two days, authorities searched the area where the two allegedly parted ways and found no clue. In the meantime, Bravo’s version of the events kept changing, and all suspicion fell on him.
In one interview, Bravo claimed that their argument turned physical after dropping off the hitchhiker. He told sheriffs, “I stopped the car … and I just punched him in the face.” He admitted to have repeatedly puched Aguilar after he got out of the car. Bravo further said, “I could see he was OK but he was not gonna get up anytime soon. And then I got in my car and left.”
Investigators then learned about Aguilar and Bravo’s strained friendship over the former’s relationship with Erika Friman. All three had graduated from the same high school in Doral, Florida. Until the senior year, Bravo and Friman had dated. However, when she broke things off with him, he became upset. Moreover, Aguilar and Friman had kept their relationship secret because of Bravo. He claimed to have been suicidal, per ABC.
Authorities arrested Pedro Bravo on September 28, 2012, for Christian Aguilar’s murder, reported Oxygen. Detectives had found a Gatorade bottle, duct tape roll inside his vehicle, and dirt and limestone. Later, the duct tape they found with the remains was matched to the one from Bravo’s vehicle.
Detectives tossed out their initial theory that Bravo acted in a fit of rage after learning that the Gatorade bottle had sedatives in it. While searching his house, they found a receipt for a shovel. Other findings included journal entries detailing the suspect’s step-by-step plan to win back Friman by “making Christian [Aguilar] disappear.” Later, they would also find the shovel the Bravo used in the crime.
According to ABC7 Chicago, prosecutors alleged that Bravo sedated Aguilar and then used a belt to strangle him. They believed the former used a belt to strangle the victim in his SUV in a Gainesville, Florida, Walmart parking lot.
Pedro Bravo’s trial took place in August 2014, after which a jury found him guilty of Christian Aguilar’s murder. He received a life sentence without the possibility of parole, per The U.S. Sun.
ABC 20/20‘s new episode airs on Friday, March 1, 2024.
