In the days following Arielle Valdes’ disappearance, which was ultimately discovered to be fatal, fresh information have emerged in police records revealing the young lady was struggling with her mental health, despite police saying there is no sign of a public safety danger.
When Priscila Coutinho reported her 21-year-old daughter missing on the evening of August 28, she stated that her daughter “had been acting strange for the last couple of days,” according to an incident report acquired by PEOPLE from Florida’s Lee County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO).
Coutinho also stated that her daughter claimed to be hearing “demon voices in her head,” according to the article.
According to her mother, Valdes, who was not on any medicine and had not gotten any relevant diagnosis, left her house in North Fort Myers at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 28 without shoes.
Coutinho stated that she had urged her daughter, described as a “long-distance marathon runner” who “usually goes out for jogs and returns,” to give her whereabouts after she had previously ran away and been discovered at a nearby power plant earlier that morning.
According to police, Coutinho felt her daughter, who had gone missing without her phone, was “having some sort of mental crisis and believes she needs help.”
According to LCSO surveillance, Valdes was seen fleeing southbound on U.S. Route 41 at 6:45 p.m. Additionally, cameras saw her traveling southbound near the Edison Bridge at 6:50 p.m.
Five days later, on Monday, September 2, the LCSO revealed that the remains of a woman believed to be Valdes had been discovered during a search in the Caloosahatchee River in North Fort Myers.
Following her d3ath, sister Isabella Hergert told NBC station WBBH that “the message” she believed Valdes would want to give was “to be present with your loved ones.”
“Know what’s important before it’s taken away,” she said.
Meanwhile, in a separate tribute, Hergert expressed her sadness and that she was “so blessed I got to experience you and call you my sister.”
