Habeneyom Belai Obituary, Death – A medical examiner has verified the identity of the individual involved in an apparent murder-suicide incident that occurred in a dormitory at Rice University on Monday. Habeneyom Belai, aged 22, succumbed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, as confirmed by the examiners.
Andrea Rodriguez Avila, a 21-year-old junior at Rice, who was believed to be in a romantic relationship with Belai, was also discovered deceased from a gunshot wound. Belai is thought to be from Florida and was visiting Avila at the time of the incident. The duration of their stay in the room prior to discovery remains uncertain.
KPRC 2 reached out to the University of Florida, which confirmed that a student by the same name attended the institution from 2019 to 2023. However, the university could not definitively ascertain whether this student was the individual involved in the incident.
Avila’s family arrived in Houston on Tuesday morning and received assistance from the university’s leadership team. They have requested privacy as they grieve their loss.
Details about Avila reveal that she hailed from Nottingham, Maryland, and attended the Community College of Baltimore County, where she was actively involved in various organizations, including the college-wide student programming board, the Multicultural Student Association, the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society, and the First Year Experience Mentor program.
Avila transferred to Rice University in the Spring of 2024, majoring in political science with a pre-law focus. During her time at Rice, she served as Deputy Parliamentarian of the Rice Student Association, a peer academic advisor at Jones College (the residential hall), and was a member of the university’s Honor Council.
The Community College of Baltimore County provided KPRC 2 with a statement regarding Avila’s untimely passing. According to police reports, Avila’s parents contacted campus police after failing to hear from their daughter, which led to a welfare check at Jones College, a residential facility on campus.
Upon entering Avila’s dormitory, campus police discovered her deceased from a gunshot wound, along with a man who was not a student at the university.