TRAGIC MYSTERY
Alexandra Morales, 24, found dead on Mexico roadside after teacher last seen attending concert
Laura Gesualdi-Gilmore
8:17 ET, Nov 12 2021
Updated: 11:53 ET, Nov 12 2021
AN AMERICAN elementary school teacher has been found dead on a roadside in Mexico after she was last seen attending a concert in October.
At least one person has been detained in connection to 24-year-old Alexandra Morales's death, with several sources reporting that it was her boyfriend.
The young teacher was reported missing on October 30Credit: GoFundMe
Her cause of death is under investigationCredit: Family Handout
Morales's uncle, Ostín Cuenca, told Telemundo Atlanta that the person in custody is her boyfriend, Fidel Barragán, and that he believes several more people may have been involved in his niece's death.
The Georgia teacher took a personal leave from her job last month and family members said they lost touch with her after she attended a concert on October 30.
Morales's family members told WSB-TV that she had gone to Mexico in late October. She was officially reported missing on November 5.
She taught first grade at Benefield Elementary School in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
On Tuesday, officials at the school issued a letter to parents informing them that the young teacher was missing.
Later that day, the family let the school know that Morales had died, WSB reported.
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"We were all very hopeful that they would find her and she would be returning safely but that was not the case," Sloan Roach, a spokeswoman for Gwinnett County Public School District, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The young teacher's cause of death is currently under investigation.
Her body was found inside of a rental car on the side of the road in Guadalajara, just a few miles from where she attended the concert at the end of October.
The area is known to be a fighting ground for some big-time cartels, with reports earlier this month that a morgue in Guadalajara actually ran out of space to store victims of gang violence and had to start using refrigerated trucks.
There have also been several reports in recent months that tourists visiting some of Mexico's famous beaches nearby have become victims to stray gunfire.
It's unclear at this time if Morales's death has anything to do with cartels in the area.
'THE MOST CARING TEACHER'
Benefield Elementary Schoolprincipal, Shonda Gipson-Stevens told the Journal-Constitution that Morales had taken personal leave and was due to return to work last week before she was reported missing.
She had been teaching at the school since 2019.
A GoFundMe page set up to raise money for Morales's family described the young teacher's close bond with her family and her love of traveling.
"Alexa was adored by her parents and loved by her two brothers," the page says.
"She had a passion for adventure and traveling around the world was her joy.
"She was the most caring teacher to all of her students and her first-grade babies will miss her dearly."
Since news of her passing broke, those who knew Morales as a teacher have begun to speak out about the tragic loss.
"My heart sank," Maria Palacios, whose daughter was in Morales's first-grade class, told WGCL.
"She was so natural at it and the kids loved her. They had so much fun."
Former colleague Bridgette Adams took to Facebook to mourn the "kind, loving" teacher as well.
"Please pray for answers and justice for my former coworker, Alexandra Morales," she wrote.
"She was incredibly kind, loving, and patient. Also, keep her family and her class of sweet first graders in your hearts/minds."
She had been teaching since 2019Credit: Twitter
The young teacher was last seen around the Guadalajara areaCredit: Google
Morales was a teacher at Benefield Elementary SchoolCredit: Facebook/Benefield Elementary School
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