A pregnant Indiana teen was laid to rest Monday, more than a week after the father of her unborn child allegedly stabbed her to death and dumped her body in a dumpster.
WNDU reported that Briana Rouhselang’s funeral took place Monday at New Life Baptist Church in Osceola. The family of Rouhselang, 17, asked the media not to attend the teen’s funeral.
The story has grabbed national and international headlines over the past week. The South Bend Tribune that the teen’s body was found December 9 in a dumpster a restaurant located a block from her home, where she was last seen alive. Rouhselang was reportedly six months pregnant at the time—and her unborn child’s father, Aaron Trejo, 16, was arrested around the same time her body was discovered.
Aaron Trejo and Rouhselang reportedly attended Mishawaka High School, where Trejo played football and Rouhselang was a former cheerleader and the student manager of the football team.
Charging documents obtained by WNDU stated that Trejo ultimately confessed to stabbing Rouhselang in the heart with a knife after an argument about her pregnancy. He allegedly told detectives that he was angry with Rouhselang for waiting too long to get an abortion.
Trejo allegedly claimed he thought about killing Rouhselang and their baby for a week before acting on it. According to the charging documents, he admitted to putting Rouhselang’s body in a plastic bag before placing it into a dumpster and discarding her phone and the murder weapon in the river.
“I took action…I took her life,” the teen reportedly told investigators.
An autopsy confirmed the pregnant teen died from multiple stab wounds and that her scarf was wrapped around her neck so tight that it’s possible she was being strangled before she died.
WSBT reported that about 500 people attended a visitation for the slain 17-year-old on Sunday. The South Bend Tribune reported that students were asked to wear blue if attending the Tuesday night’s girls and boys basketball games at Mishawaka High School for a “Blue for Bre” event. The student-run effort aims to honor Rouhselang, whose favorite color was blue.
Meanwhile, Trejo has pleaded not guilty to murder and feticide charges. Charged as an adult, he remains jailed without bail.
Additional reading:
UPDATE: High school football player pleads NOT GUILTY to killing pregnant cheerleader girlfriend
DEVELOPING: High school football player arrested after pregnant cheerleader’s body found in dumpster
[Featured Image: Aaron Trejo/St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit; Breana Rouhselang/WNDU]
