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Her family want answers.
By NyRee Ausler — Written on Nov 16, 2022
On October 28, 2022, Shanquella Robinson, a 25-year-old hairdresser from Charlotte, North Carolina traveled to Cabo with friends to celebrate a birthday. Now her family is wondering how she wound up dead within 24 hours.
Salamondra Robinson, Shanquella’s mother, last heard from her daughter not long before her death, she told Queen City News, “She told me they had a chef. They were getting ready to eat. They were eating tacos or a salad or something.
She continues, “I said okay. I love you. Have a good night, and I will talk to you tomorrow. I never talked to my child again. She never made it back home.”
What happened to Shanquella Robinson?
Shanquella's death certificate lists the cause of death as severe spinal cord injury and atlas luxation. Police noted that Shanquella was "found unconscious in her living room."
Police ruled that there was no foul play involved, despite Shanquella having a broken neck at the time of her death.
Shanquella's family is concerned her friends may have been involved in her death.
A day after arriving in Cabo, the young woman’s friends began calling Salamondra frantically to tell her that her daughter wasn’t feeling well. According to her, “They said she wasn’t feeling well. She had alcohol poisoning. They couldn’t get a pulse.”
Her mother became suspicious because she tells reporters, “Each one of the people that was there with her was telling different stories.”
The inconsistencies prompted the family to contact the FBI and Mexican law enforcement. That is when they learned of the dubious circumstances of Shanquella's death.
Since an autopsy revealed that Shanquella's death was not alcohol-related, her family believes something must have happened in order for their daughter to these sustain injuries.
“No one told the same story, so I never believed them anyway,” Salamondra says.
The facts of the case are somewhat murky, but what has been confirmed is that Shanquella never left the villa the night before and that her body was discovered by a maid the following day.
The group stayed at the Villa Linda 32. A company rep told reporters that her friends had called on Saturday, the day after they arrived, asking for help.
According to them, a doctor was dispatched to the hotel room and began life-saving efforts on the young lady. Unfortunately, she died fifteen minutes later.
A video allegedly shows Shanquella getting violently attacked by a 'friend.'
A video allegedly taken by someone on the trip appears to show a woman violently assaulting Shanquella in a hotel room.
Though we cannot confirm the validity of the video, it has been shared over social media thousands of times. Due to the graphic nature of the video, we have not included it and warn that it is extremely violent in nature and may be triggering.
In the disturbing video, she is being prodded to fight by a woman and declines, but that person proceeds to brutally beat Shanquella before throwing her to the ground and continuing the vicious attack.
A man, now thought to be Shanquella’s "best friend" can be heard telling her to "fight back." At no point does he, or anyone in the room intervene to help the battered woman.
Queen City News received a guest list of the people who traveled to Cabo with Shanquella, but none of the names have been released by authorities.
However, several media outlets have released the names of the people suspected to be in attendance at the time of her death. Some have even identified the alleged attacker as Daejhanae Jackson.
It took nearly two weeks and cost $6,000, but Shanquella was finally returned home to her family. Despite the autopsy report, on November 10, Mexican authorities refuted that there was any foul play in Shanquella’s death.
Shanquella's family has hired a private investigator who is looking into their claims of foul play.
At last check, no one has been arrested in connection with the callous assault on Shanquella Robinson or her mysterious death. None of her so-called friends have made any statements related to their involvement.
We can only hope that Shanquella will receive the justice she deserves for the merciless betrayal of people she thought she could trust. We will keep her family, friends, and community in our thoughts and prayers.
NyRee Ausler is a writer from Seattle, Washington, and the author of seven books. She covers lifestyle and entertainment & news, as well as navigating the workplace and social issues.