Woman killed at South Austin apartment complex: APD
Woman killed at South Austin apartment complex
A woman is dead after an incident at a South Austin apartment complex Wednesday afternoon.
AUSTIN, Texas - A woman is dead after an incident at a South Austin apartment complex Wednesday afternoon.
The body of 40-year-old Francesca Ortiz was found in the grass behind the apartment building, police say.
What we know:
APD shared around 3:41 p.m. June 17 that officers were at the scene of a homicide in the 7700 block of the south I-35 northbound service road, between William Cannon Drive and E Slaughter Lane.
In a press briefing on Wednesday night, APD Ofc Austin Zarling said that Austin 911 received multiple calls for a shoot/stab hotshot response at the Waters at Bluff Springs at around 1:37 p.m.
When officers arrived on scene, they found a Hispanic woman in her 40s, later identified as Ortiz, with trauma to her body, outside in a public area of the complex.
At 1:50 p.m., she was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation so far shows that Ortiz was at the complex earlier, around midnight, trying to visit someone. Between that time and when officers discovered her body, she "suffered injuries resulting in her death and her body was left in a field behind one of the buildings.
FULL: APD presser on South Austin homicide
Austin police gave a briefing on a homicide at a South Austin apartment complex Wednesday afternoon.
What we don't know:
Zarling says APD currently has no information on a suspect, how many people may have been involved, or what led up to the incident.
There is also no information available on how the woman exactly died, but an autopsy has ruled the cause of death was blunt force trauma.
What you can do:
Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact APD at 512-477-3588 or Capital Area Crime Stoppers at 512-472-TIPS.
Detectives are also asking for any information from anyone who was in the area between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, or those with knowledge of the incident.
Anyone with photos, videos or other evidence can share those materials through this link. Specifically, investigators would like video or audio recordings from security cameras, doorbell cameras, vehicle cameras or other recording devices in the area.
This is being investigated as Austin's 29th homicide of 2026.
The Source: Information in this report comes from the Austin Police Department