The Full Story | The Girl Who Died on my Study Abroad Trip & "The Predator of Seville"

I fully respect that you wish you had been kinder to those girls on your trip, but your derision towards their behavior protected you more than kindness could have.

The people around Manuel helping him with his sick, twisted acts of monstrosities should be held equally as liable as Manuel. The very thought that you could be a cog in this system without feeling a shred of guilt is frankly sickening!

OMG i watched that documentary the DAY it appeared on Netflix, and when you first came on i was like “no fcking way, that sounds like Siobhan Aguilar from YT” and then i looked more closely and it WAS you! i wanted to say something about it, but it wasn’t germane to your video and comments at the time, so i just let it go because i didn’t want to be weird or like, abruptly triggering with that topic out of left field. that said, i am so glad you are discussing it all now! thank you so much for coming forward and sharing your experience.

As an American in Spain, there are many people who take advantage of girls studying abroad who are genuinely full of trust and starryeyed with the experience. Thank you so much for bringing this up to light!

the image of her mom watching her backpack as she leaves and praying she is safe... man.... when your voice broke a bit i started tearing up too. you managed to convey her personhood so effectively; that feeling when abstractly known information actually, viscerally, clicks. i'm there and i've been there before and i know these people and being a bright ex-teen with an inflated view of your grizzledness and these giddy new student interactions and smelly sticky bars with stupid music and bizarre drunk hangouts and off-putting afters and i've seen these smarmy guys before, many times over. anyway. great work as usual is my point i guess, thank you

I studied abroad in Sevilla at age 20, a few years after you and even a few after Gabrielle went public with her story. I never heard a word of warning about this man or any situation like this. I can’t believe young women are continuing to be put in these positions. I am so grateful to you and Gabrielle for your courage and commitment to the truth.

Your Father's advice is exceptional. Beware of those who pounce. So well put. Thank you for that. :)

Unfortunately something that unites us as women is our proximity to and experiences with violence caused by men. An innate, unspoken understanding that many of us share, the club we never wanted to be a part of. Thank you for sharing, may we all be vigilant and look out for one another

Your story resonated deeply with me. I studied abroad in Granada, Spain, and during my first weekend there, I was invited to a club through an agency very similar to Manuel’s. The club was full of foreign female students, all brought there by the same agency. I only had one drink that night, but shortly after, I felt terribly sick and blacked out. Fortunately, I managed to escape. I was drugged. Months later, a friend I met during the semester — another foreign student who attended the same event — confessed that she had also been drugged that night and r*p*d. Unlike me, she wasn’t able to get away. Watching this video made me realize that our experience was not an isolated case. These agencies prey on vulnerable foreign female students and take advantage of them. Tragically, this seems to be far more common than most people realize.

Waitwaitwaitwaitwait so you mean to tell me she was so drunk she would have been on the edge of unconsciousness and she somehow got up, took off all her clothes, walked over to the railing, and then tragically fell? All on her own? Rightrightrightrightright sure

It's not just abroad. The rise of drug facilitated sexual assault is terrifying and more common than you might think. I personally know of someone like this in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Thank you, Siobhan for sharing something so vulnerable.

oh my god, you wrote that essay????

Finding out that Carrie died believing that no one cared about her daughter’s death except her made me cry so hard. It’s so brave that you shared the story and also understandable that you were in such a turbulent period of life and lost contact while settling in to a new country. I just wish Carrie had been able to read your essay and see the documentary and see the guilty verdict. I’m sick knowing he is still free but proud of every woman who spoke up. Thank you for sharing your essay with the world 💜

I hope the mother of that poor girl can rest in peace. My heart broke for her after reading your essay.

I think the part where Manu taunted you for your father having money was interesting, he probably feels like he's getting back at spoiled rich Americans by targeting them, that they deserve it, somehow

As a victim of a serial perpetrator myself, it’s always equal parts disturbing and comforting to hear stories like this. Gabrielle’s grit, kindness, and humor remind me so much of the girl who got in contact with the other victims to coordinate a way to expose this guy to his friend group because none of us felt it was worth the pain, time, and money to pursue anything legally but at least he could lose some social support. Thank you both. ❤

Thank you so much for sharing despite the toll to yourself. It's incredibly brave and strong of you and I'm glad you helped stop this man from hurting more women

What this man and all of the other men did to all of these women was disgusting and clearly shows how harm against women is perpetuated. The responses to victims coming out and the way people responded to all of the harm being brought to light is exactly how the cycles of abuse continues. It is never the victims fault for what happened to them, and I hope that this story and the many like it serve as a warning sign to all travelers; of any gender. Sadly we do live in a society where young people (especially women) are preyed upon in their most vulnerable moments and so when I say "yes all men," this is what I mean. Not only did some men participate in the violence, many turned a blind eye and allowed more harm to be done.

I’m so glad your intuition kept you safe. I remember being that young and as you were recalling your mood and behavior during that trip, I could imagine how you must have felt (at the time) like a buzzkill and were probably having “why can’t I just have fun” type thoughts. When you’re that young of a woman, it’s hard to be able to interpret what’s happening inside you as being intuitive or judging a situation for what it is. Instead, we push ourselves through experiences that aren’t quite right because we tell ourselves “I’m just being a buzzkill” or “I’m just in a bad mood”. Again, I’m glad your “bad mood” kept you safe 💞 thank you for sharing your story. I hope other young women studying abroad hear it.

As someone who has also survived a serial abuser and rapist, this is so vulnerable and brave. Love to you, Babes