A mother of seven, missing for nearly a week, was discovered dead in a vehicle submerged in a Texas river. Authorities are now investigating what they are calling a “questionable death.”
The Waco Police Department confirmed in a Tuesday, Aug. 19, update that the victim found Monday, Aug. 18, inside a Dodge Caravan was 39-year-old Consuelo Bernabe.
Her daughter, Maria Romero, had shared a social media post on Sunday, Aug. 17, saying her mother had been missing since Friday, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
“If anybody seen my mother in Waco tx please text me she been missing since Friday COME BACK HOME imy😔🫶🏼Consuelo Bernabe,” Romero wrote.
On Monday morning, authorities were alerted that the Caravan had been located in the Brazos River near North University Parks Drive and Jefferson Avenue, the Waco Police Department said in a news release.
“Waco Fire dive team, Texas Game Wardens, and Tow King assisted in pulling the car out of the river,” the department stated. “Once the car was removed, a female victim was located.”
The department confirmed that Bernabe’s next of kin had been notified. No further details were immediately available, and the investigation is ongoing.
David Romero, Bernabe’s son, told CBS affiliate KWTX that his mother “always smiled” and prioritized taking care of her children. He described her disappearance as uncharacteristic.
“I wasn’t trying to overthink. I was like, ‘But that’s not like my mom.’ She always has her phone on her, she’ll answer any call and message that you send her,” he said.
Another daughter, Hermelinda Romero, told ABC affiliate KXXV that her mother was last seen at a bar in Lott on Friday and suspected foul play. “Someone had to be involved” in her mother’s death, she said.
Hermelinda added that Bernabe had called the family from the bar, saying she was waiting for a man to pick her up. The family believes she may have been intoxicated at the time.
“I feel like it was the guy she was last with, he had to have something to do with it but we don’t know why,” Hermelinda said.
PEOPLE contacted the Waco Police Department on Wednesday, Aug. 20. The department said in a statement shared with KXXV:
“As the release states, this is a questionable death investigation and we will not know more until autopsy results come back to determine the cause of her death. All the information released is what is available at this time.”
After the discovery of the vehicle, Maria paid tribute to her mother on Facebook:
“Rest in peace ma I love you so much words can’t explain I wanna see your beautiful smile again now every time I go in your room I will cry and just be like why you but we will get JUSTICE SERVED can’t wait to see again.”
