Law enforcement authorities in Texas are investigating the mysterious death of a 30-year-old mother of four, Giselle Salazar-Tapia.
Her body was discovered late last month, partially submerged in water and hanging off a dock.
Police believe the scene was staged to look like a suicide.
The League City Police Department reported receiving a call on May 31 at around 1:48 p.m. regarding a woman hanging from a dock at a marina on Davis Road.
Multiple callers told the dispatcher that the woman appeared lifeless, hanging by a rope from the dock.
Police and emergency medical personnel arrived at the scene and pronounced Salazar-Tapia dead.
Initially, the police shared limited details about her death.
They interviewed her friends, family, and a "distraught" boyfriend who was staying on a boat nearby.
According to the police, the man believed to be Salazar-Tapia’s boyfriend, was very upset and initially refused to leave his boat.
Officers eventually convinced him to come out safely.
After more than a week of investigation, the police confirmed that evidence suggested Salazar-Tapia was killed elsewhere and then brought to the marina.
One key piece of evidence was the positioning of her arm, which was found raised without anything holding it up.
Officer Jose Ortega explained that this indicated she had died with her arm raised and rigor mortis had set in before her body was moved.
Lt. Eric Cox of the criminal investigation division also mentioned to Houston’s ABC affiliate KTRK that the positioning of her arm suggested she had passed away in another location.
The police have identified two persons of interest who had close interactions with Salazar-Tapia.
These individuals have been interviewed.
The boyfriend, identified as 30-year-old James Hart, spoke to KTRK about the last night he saw Salazar-Tapia.
He said they were both on his boat when she got up after midnight, presumably to use the bathroom.
When she didn’t return, he assumed she had gone out for a few days and went back to sleep.
He learned of her death when the police contacted him the next day.
Hart denied any involvement, stating, “I would never hurt Giselle.”
Hart also mentioned that he typically had two surveillance cameras on his boat, but one disappeared before Salazar-Tapia’s death, and the other had been manually turned away from his vessel.
Police confirmed they had been called to Hart's boat several times in the past for disputes involving Salazar-Tapia.
Salazar-Tapia's family believes she was murdered and would never have taken her own life.
Her sister, Esperanza Alegria, expressed the family’s desire for justice, saying, “We just want justice for her. We want whoever is responsible to be charged for what they did to my sister.”
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