Amy's friends in Malaga: 'In her last days she had a sadness in her eyes that was heartbreaking to see'

"In her last days Amy had a sadness in her eyes that was heartbreaking to see," say people close to Zunilda (Amy to her friends). The 43-year-old woman was allegedly murdered by her partner, Jarrod. Their bodies were found in the flat they were renting in Fuengirola on Thursday, 19 June.

Both of them were bodybuilders and their mutual friends in Malaga had sensed that something was not right between them. Her family also knew that something was wrong when she stopped answering calls and messages, as Zunilda had told them that her husband was abusing her and that she would ask for a divorce.

They trained together every day, but also made plans outside the gym. Behnaz Azar - a professional bodybuilder and a friend of Zunilda's - said: "She was no longer happy with Jay and wanted to return to her country (Colombia) to get a divorce." Saturday (14 June) was the last day they saw her. From then onwards, she stopped answering calls and messages and never returned to her gym.

Jarrod had been Zunilda's trainer, until she decided to cut off the professional tie due to frequent arguments. "We feel that Jay didn't like that decision at all. He was jealous and complained all the time, because he felt left out."

Amy died a few weeks before taking part in an international bodybuilding competition that she was "very excited" about. As she was preparing, Jarrod "started to put her down". "He would tell her 'your body is shrinking, you're losing muscle, you're using too many substances and you're going to get sick'," her friends shared. Zunilda refused to listen to his belittling remarks, sticking to her "controlled, healthy plan". "She took care of herself. She did it conscientiously, without excesses and without madness, but even so, she only received criticism."

Behnaz said that Jarrod's behaviour hurt Amy so much that she stopped posing in front of him. "She said he had started to look at her with cold eyes, with negative energy. Her home, which was once a shelter, had become a place of pressure and sadness."

On Saturday afternoon, Behnaz and Amy trained legs together. When they finished, they said goodbye and Benhaz didn't hear from her on Sunday. She got worried when she saw a disturbing Instagram post on Monday, which prompted her to send several messages, but Amy didn't reply. "I was overwhelmed with worry," she said.

Armin Ghanizadeh, who also trained with the couple and coached Amy, wrote to Jarrod on Sunday to wish him well before his knee surgery, which had been scheduled for Monday. Jarrod did not reply. On Monday, he tried to contact them again, but to no avail. He went to look for them at the Higueron West residential complex, where they were staying. Although he did not know exactly where the flat was, Armin saw the blinds pulled down and decided to go to the police station and report the couple missing.

The following day, the National Police entered the flat and found their bodies. According to the main hypothesis of the investigators, Zunilda was murdered by Jarrod with a hammer, after which he committed suicide by stabbing himself with a knife.

"I'm convinced it all started because of an argument related to that Instagram post. Jay probably posted it, Amy got upset, he took her phone away, turned it off and the situation got out of control. What exactly happened inside that flat, we'll never know," said Behnaz.