Body Discovered Near Home of Texas Teen Camila Mendoza Olmos After Christmas Eve Disappearance

Authorities searching for 19-year-old Camila Mendoza Olmos, who vanished from her Texas home early on Christmas Eve, have discovered a body in a nearby field, officials said Tuesday.

Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar announced during a Dec. 30 news briefing that the body was found “very close” to Olmos’ home in northwest Bexar County, where she was last seen hours before her disappearance. While it is too early to confirm the person’s identity, Salazar said investigators do not suspect foul play.

The county’s medical examiner will determine identification, as well as the cause and manner of death.

Salazar said investigators had been exploring several possibilities in the case, including self-harm, noting that there are “some indicators” suggesting the body found may be linked to that scenario. He added that Olmos had shown what he described as previously “undiagnosed” signs of depression.

“From what has been described to us, it sounds like a young person going through a very tough time in their life, dealing with emotional issues,” Salazar said, adding that there were indicators of suicidal ideation.

Olmos was last seen around 6:58 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 24, leaving her family’s home on the 11000 block of Caspian Spring, according to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office. Surveillance footage showed someone believed to be Olmos near the family’s vehicle shortly after 7 a.m., appearing to search for something inside the car. Investigators believe she then left the area on foot, carrying only her car keys and possibly her driver’s license.

Her car remained parked at the home, and her phone was later found left behind on her bed.

In the days following her disappearance, multiple agencies — including the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security — joined the search. Salazar previously told ABC News that there was enough information to suggest Olmos could be in “imminent danger,” prompting an intensive, around-the-clock investigation.

“We definitely don’t want to miss anything,” Salazar said at the time. “The ground search is somewhat limited to a couple of square miles, but we’re also not ruling out that this case could take us outside the continental United States.”

Investigators considered a range of possibilities, including kidnapping, human trafficking, and the chance that Olmos may have left voluntarily. Authorities said her family and loved ones have been fully cooperative throughout the investigation.

Olmos’ mother, Rosario, previously told KENS that she and her daughter had been sleeping in the same bed when she felt Camila get up early that morning. About 90 minutes later, she woke to find her daughter gone.

“I put [her phone] to charge and went out to look for her,” Rosario said. “I thought I would find her like other times, walking, and we would come home together,” noting that her daughter often took morning walks.

Salazar later described Olmos leaving her phone behind as “highly unusual” and a key reason authorities escalated their search efforts.

The sheriff also shared that Olmos had recently gone through a mutual breakup, though investigators do not believe it played a direct role in her disappearance. Officials confirmed that Olmos, a U.S. citizen, was not detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Department of Homeland Security’s involvement, Salazar said, was limited to monitoring any potential border crossings or international travel connected to the case.

Authorities said they will release additional information once the medical examiner’s findings are complete.