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Pedro Bravo remains in jail without bail

The man charged with the murder of missing University of Florida student Christian Aguilar made a court appearance Saturday and was denied bail, according to court records.

Pedro Bravo made his first appearance after being charged on Friday by the Gainesville Police Department with the murder of Christian Aguilar. The search for the missing University of Florida student continued today.

Although there has been no body recovered yet, police still charged Bravo with first degree premeditated murder, according to Alachua County Jail records.

Bravo told police several stories of what happened the night Christian Aguilar went missing. According to the arrest report, Bravo said the two friends had met at the Hub on the UF campus on Sept. 20. Bravo said he drove Aguilar to the Best Buy on Southwest Archer Road and other locations in the Gainesville area.

Bravo told police he and Aguilar got into an argument over Bravo’s ex-girlfriend who is currently dating Aguilar. Bravo originally denied getting into any physical fight, according to the report.

Bravo later changed his story. He told police he punched Aguilar and made him leave his vehicle. He said he followed Aguilar out of the car and continued beating him until Aguilar lost consciousness, according to the report.

Bravo left Aguilar "barely breathing and not moving, lying on his back partially in water," the report said.

Police found Aguilar’s book bag in a suitcase located in Bravo’s closet. Traces of blood were also found in several locations of Bravo’s vehicle. It has yet to be determined whose blood it is.

Bravo remains in the Alachua County jail. Ron Kozlowski, one of Bravo's attorneys, said it is premature to talk about anything that might be done in the proceedings of this case.

GPD is still seeking assistance for the search and recovery of Christian Aguilar. If you know anything about this case, please contact the Gainesville Police Department Criminal Investigations Division at 352- 393-7604. If you are available to help with the search, check this website for updates.

Christina is a reporter for WUFT News and can be contacted by calling 352-392-6397 or emailing news@wuft.org.