An image shows hearts. This was the final message sent. Sandra Bermejo Before death. He replied to a close friend who had earlier shared a photo of hummingbirds, one of his favorite birds, on November 7, the day before he vanished. Sandra’s body was found on December 23 by a fisherman in the waters off Cabo Peñas, Asturias. The case summary accessible here OPEN STATUS reveals the struggle of a young psychologist and the resolve to keep living despite serious personal challenges.
The National Police, overseeing the investigation, state there is no sign of foul play by others in the woman’s death. The autopsy indicates death by external trauma caused by heavy rain, though the report has not yet been handed to the family.
Family members, the lawyer Juan Manuel Medina, and SOS Disappeared, led by Joaquín Amills, demand a fuller inquiry. They call for testimony from three fishermen who reported seeing two cars in the area at dawn, a photo from the day after the disappearance showing an unidentified woman walking toward the cliffs, and a phone text stream from the day after suggesting a possible meeting near Cabo Peñas.
Security cameras captured Sandra entering her car and leaving the garage at 3:26 p.m. on the day she disappeared. OPEN STATUS
A chronology of Sandra’s final weeks shows a person living in Gijón after a Covid-19 quarantine, who faced and gradually overcame depression in spring 2022, while experimenting with ayahuasca and other herbal remedies. This reconstruction uses police data available so far.
September 3. Sandra is 32 years old. A celebration takes place on a farm near Ranón airport, Asturias, owned by the family involved with the group Agua de Estrellas. She attends retreats and meetings with about twenty people from her circle. Friends say Sandra appeared content, balancing her traditional and alternative social worlds.
“Vision Mission”
Mid-September. Sandra participates in a spiritual retreat on a farm at the base of the Picos de Europa, described as a season of vision seeking. The guru and another man, unnamed and said to be from León or Zamora, join the sessions. Four days of fasting and silence in a hut follow. Sandra later tells a friend the experience fell short of her expectations.
End of September. Sandra begins therapy with a psychologist via video. She expresses sadness and discouragement similar to the previous autumn. The therapist asks about suicidal thoughts. The psychologist notes that Sandra responds clearly that she is not suicidal.
Her therapist’s September question about suicide: the answer is no
October 17. She travels to Madrid to visit a newborn niece and expresses a wish to be present as an aunt and caregiver.
Later in October, at 21, she chats with a friend online and reveals a sense of detachment, feeling as if everything in life cost her dearly. Six days later the mood persists. On October 25 she messages another friend saying she feels stuck in a mental loop, yet she also writes that she hopes recovery is possible. She also notes repaying a debt related to ayahuasca sessions.
Early November. On the 1st, Sandra tells a friend in Gijón that daily routines are extraordinarily difficult, though she does attend theater classes on the 3rd. A two-hour conversation that day reveals heightened distress. In a later message she acknowledges feeling unwell but hints at a desire to endure and recover. A new appointment with the psychologist is arranged for November 11.
The following day, she walks along the Peñafrancia river path near Gijón with a friend, then texts another acquaintance about feeling desperate.
November 6. She speaks with her mother by phone. The two agree to reconnect on November 9. She also chats with a friend who has a birthday on November 20, and she writes, nearly resigned, that she may have to take action because she feels herself sinking deeper. That afternoon she visits a friend’s home for a dance.
hummingbirds and hearts
November 7. That night she reconnects with the same friend who suggested activities. They meet on Wednesday the 9th. The friend shares a photo of hummingbirds, one of Sandra’s favorite birds. Sandra responds with a picture of a heart. It would be the last message she sent.
November 8. Security cameras in the home parking lot record Sandra entering her car at 3:23 p.m. Three minutes later she is seen leaving the car alone, and at 3:47 p.m. a supermarket camera in Luanco, Asturias, tracks her toward the road to Cabo Peñas. Her vehicle remains in the area for days.
Sandra’s phone stops signaling in the Cabo Peñas vicinity at 5:52 p.m. that day.
November 9. Several mussel fishermen report three cars parked side by side in the north area at around 7:30 in the morning. They cannot determine if this concerns November 7, 8, or 9. The family, lawyer, and SOS Desaparecidos insist this point merits scrutiny to confirm if Sandra was alone the night before.
A photo from before 11 a.m. shows a young woman walking along a restricted path toward the cliffs from behind. The family does not know if it relates to Sandra and requests further exploration of this lead.