New court documents reveal that Hisham Saleh Abugharbieh, 26 years old, accused of murdering two doctoral students from the University of South Florida (USF), consulted ChatGPT three days before the crime to ask how to dispose of a body by putting it in black garbage bags and throwing it in a dumpster.
The inquiry was conducted on April 13, 2026, according to the records submitted by the prosecutors to the court, and is regarded by authorities as direct evidence of premeditation in the double crime.
Among the documented questions are scenarios about whether someone could survive a gunshot to the head, and whether neighbors could hear gunshots, details that indicate meticulous planning of the attack.
The victims are Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, both 27 years old and originally from Bangladesh, who were pursuing doctoral programs at USF and were last seen on April 16, 2026.
Abugharbieh was Limon's roommate in the Avalon Heights Boulevard residential complex in Tampa, and was arrested after barricading himself in his family's home in the Lake Forest neighborhood, surrendering peacefully to a SWAT team covered only with a blue towel.
The body of Limon was found under the Howard Frankland Bridge in Tampa, wrapped in several heavy-duty black trash bags, with multiple stab wounds according to the autopsy.
Last Sunday, human remains were found near the same bridge, in the waterways of Tampa Bay.
The authorities believe they belong to Bristy, although official identification has not yet been confirmed at this time
The court documents also detail that on the night of April 16, a witness saw Abugharbieh moving cardboard boxes towards the complex's dumpster, claiming he was disposing of old clothes.
That same night, the suspect purchased garbage bags, adhesive tape, cleaning products, and air fresheners, and his phone registered a signal at the Howard Frankland Bridge, the very place where Limon's remains were later found.
In the apartment shared by both, significant blood was found in the foyer, the kitchen, the hallway, and the bedroom, while in the garbage compactor of the complex, Limon's wallet, glasses, credit card, and university ID were discovered, alongside Bristy's pink phone case and clothing with DNA from both victims.
The fiscal motion presented to the court states that "the evidence would demonstrate that Hisham Abugharbieh used a sharp instrument to fatally wound Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy multiple times, causing their deaths."
A relative of the accused told investigators that Abugharbieh “was known to have difficulties controlling his anger and was violent with the family in the past”, and court records indicate a protective order filed in 2023 by his own brother.
Abugharbieh was formally charged last Saturday with two counts of first-degree murder with a weapon and is being held without bail, also facing charges of illegal manipulation of a human body, evidence tampering, and false imprisonment.
The case arises in a context of growing alarm in Florida regarding the use of artificial intelligence in crime planning: the state's Attorney General, James Uthmeier, opened a formal investigation against OpenAI on April 10 for the alleged connection of ChatGPT with the shooting at Florida State University in 2025, in which the assailant engaged in over 270 conversations with the chatbot prior to the attack.
In Florida, first-degree murder with premeditation is a capital offense that can result in the death penalty or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, although prosecutors have not yet indicated whether they will seek the death penalty in this case.
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