Breana Rouhselang.Photo: GoFundMe
The family of an Indianacheerleader who was allegedly stabbed to death behind her homeand the family of the teen footballer accused of killing her are speaking out.
On Sunday, the body of Breana Rouhselang, 17, was found in a dumpster behind a restaurant blocks away from her Mishawaka home, where she was reported missing from hours earlier. She was six months pregnant.
A classmate of hers, Aaron Trejo, 16, was arrested and charged with murder after allegedly confessing to police that he stabbed Breana because she was carrying his unwanted child.
Now, the family of both Breana and heralleged murderer are speaking out,telling theDaily Beastthat nothing could’ve prepared them for what occurred.
“We just don’t even know what to think,” Breana’s stepmother, Nicole Rouhselang, told the outlet. “We’re in shock. We’re in disbelief. She was a child with a child. There’s no words to express how I feel.”
Aaron Trejo.St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office
Breana’s father, Dave, said he had never heard of Trejo and when asked if he believes the teen was the father of Breana’s unborn child, answered, “We’ll have a more clear answer on it later but I do believe so. That in my mind is probably the motive behind this.”
In the last few months, Breana’s grades had been slipping, her family said. Still, she seemed like the happy, sweet girl she had always been. Her father, Dave, telling theDaily Beasthis daughter was “the most caring, innocent person you could ever meet.”
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The last time Dave saw his daughter was the week before Thanksgiving when he treated her to a birthday party at T.G.I.Friday’s, where he works. Afterward, the family went home and relaxed.
“It was a great day,” Dave recalled. Breana spent her time between the homes of her biological mother and father, who shared custody of her, according to the outlet.
When she didn’t come back inside, Breana’s mother went to Aaron’s home a few blocks away, but the teen said Breana had never showed up to talk and that he hadn’t seen her.
Worried, Breana’s mother called the police, who interviewed Trejo and later found Breana’s body wrapped in a plastic bag hidden in a dumpster. Trejo allegedly said he stabbed her in the heart with a knife he had brought from home after getting into a fight.
“I took action, I took her life,” he allegedly told police.
“This is not him. This is not in his character,” Trejo’s aunt,Alexzaundra Patton-Manu, told theDaily Beast.“Everybody’s still in shock.”
Patton-Mahu, who lives in California and is Trejo’s maternal aunt, said the teen was one of four siblings in a tight-knit family. He would play video games, play on sports teams and sometimes keep to himself. “Just your typical kid,” she said.
Like Breana’s, nobody in Trejo’s family had heard of the other teen.
“This is just a nightmare all the way around,” she said. “I wish we could wake up.”
Breana’s and Trejo’s families could not be reached for comment Thursday. Trejo has pleaded not guilty. His attorney information was not available Thursday.
source: people.com
