Zoe Sozo Bethel dead: Miss Alabama dies after suffering horror injuries in accident 

Cops investigating the mysterious death of Miss Alabama Zoe Sozo Bethel originally believed she tried to commit suicide by leaping off a Miami condo, but can now reveal she accidentally fell. 

The beauty queen, 27, was in a coma for more than a week after suffering devastating brain injuries when she fell from the third floor of a seven-story residential building in the waterfront Edgewater neighborhood.

Family members announced last Friday that Bethel, who has a daughter, had succumbed to injuries suffered in the unspecified February 10 ‘accident’ without divulging further details.

But a spokesman for the Miami Police Department confirmed the fatal incident was treated as an attempted suicide.

Homicide detectives were assigned to investigate, however it’s standard practice for them to probe suicides as well as murders and unsolved deaths.

Miss Alabama Zoe Sozo Bethel, 27, died of head injuries suffered a week earlier

The beauty queen was in a coma for more than a week after suffering brain injuries when she fell from this  seven-story residential building

Bethel, 27, a deeply religious beauty pageant contestant and conservative commentator, died Friday in Miami of head injuries that she sustained in a ‘mysterious accident’

Police said that the model’s horror plunge was investigated as a suicide attempt after a preliminary investigation revealed she fell from a third-floor window.

However they clarified Tuesday afternoon that the cause of death was later determined to be ‘accidental’ by a medical examiner and that foul play was ruled out.

‘On Friday, February 11, 2022 at approximately 12:05 am, Miami Police Officers responded to a call of a possible suicide attempt,’ the Miami Police Department said in a statement.

‘The preliminary investigation revealed that the victim fell out of a third-floor window. The victim was identified as 27-year-old, Zoe Sozo Bethel. She was transported by Miami Fire Rescue to Jackson Memorial Hospital in critical condition.

‘On Friday, February 18, 2022 at 5:24 a.m., Zoe Sozo Bethel succumbed to her injuries. The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner ruled the cause of death as ‘Blunt Force Trauma’ and the manner of death is ‘Accidental’. This was a tragic accident, and no foul play is suspected.’

Zoe’s family released a statement around the same time Tuesday afternoon contesting the idea that the mom to a five-year-old girl meant to kill herself.

‘She was growing and becoming more successful each year of her life, and she was only just beginning. And if she had a choice, she would still be here with us today,’ the statement said, describing Zoe as a devout believer in Jesus and a strong conservative.

‘As is common with any death that is not due to natural causes, law enforcement will conduct an investigation into the cause of death. Thus, the investigation into the cause of Zoe’s death is part of the normal protocol for law enforcement, and is still open and pending,’ the statement added.

‘The initial police report is simply preliminary and is not conclusive, and is further absent specific facts from eyewitness testimony that would alter the ‘incident type’ status listed on the preliminary police report.

‘The family reserves the right to release information as is appropriate in conjunction with the investigation and will make certain necessary information available at the conclusion of the investigation.’

Zoe Sozo Bethel, shown with Donald Trump Jr., was a political commentator for RBSN, a conservative media company

Bethel represented Alabama in the Miss for America Strong pageant, which honors single women.  

She was also a political commentator for RBSN, a conservative media company known for covering former President Donald Trump’s rallies, according to her family. 

According to the family’s social media posts, Bethel suffered ‘severe damage to her brain/brainstem’ on February 10 in an accident in Miami. She was in a coma until February 18 before she passed away. 

‘Zoe touched the hearts of many people,’ the family posted on social media. 

A message posted on February 14 said that ‘unfortunately the doctors are saying the damage cannot be repaired & that she may not have much time left.’ 

Bethel had also worked for the anti-abortion group Students for Life and Project Veritas, the right wing organization that aims to show liberal bias in media reporting.

Miss USA 2019, Cheslie Kryst, 30, was found dead last month after jumping from a New York City skyscraper

‘Today we are praying for VICTORY for those without a voice in overturning Roe vs Wade,’ she posted on Facebook from the Supreme Court building during arguments over a Mississippi law limiting abortion to the first 15 weeks of pregnancy.

The issue was very personal to her.

‘I decided to choose life over terminating the innocent life God blessed me with (My daughter),’ she wrote on social media. ‘No matter how bad the situation may be, choosing LIFE is always the right choice.’

Her smile lights up her Instagram page, which usually shows her dressed to the hilt, sometimes in a form-fitting gold lame evening dress, other shots show her casual side in a stylish saffron frock sitting by a river bank.

This is the second beauty queen to die this year of suicide.

Former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst, 30, leaped to her death from a 60-story New York City high-rise in January. 

Bethel’s brother posted this photo from the hospital in Miami before she died 

Bethel is shown with her five-year-old daughter. DailyMail.com can now reveal cops believe she tried to commit suicide by leaping off a Miami condo

She also worked for the anti-abortion group Students for Life and Project Veritas, the right-wing organization that aims to show liberal bias in media reporting

A video on her Facebook tribute has her striding through a pine tree grove in a white dress and boots, flashing her mega-watt smile and waving a large read banner that says ‘Jesus is Kind.’

The 27-year-old beauty seemed ready to take on the world for her conservative beliefs.

She was reported to have been fired in 2018 from a modeling gig for her beliefs.

Atlanta-based Ursula Wiedmann Models sent an email to Bethel telling her that they would no longer work with her because of her ‘racist political connections,’ according to Fox News.

Bethel told Fox that it was because she posted a photo of herself with Donald Trump Jr.

Wiedmann confirmed the email to Fox, but said Bethel was not on contract. 

The beauty queen was in a coma for more than a week after suffering brain injuries when she fell from a seven-story residential building 

‘We work in a diverse industry and we do not tolerate intolerance of any kind,’ Wiedmann said in a statement. ‘We wish her the best in her future endeavors.’

Bethel’s family said that they were stunned by the suddenness of her death. 

‘This has been an abrupt & very traumatizing situation for our family, & we can imagine how much of a shock this will also be to everyone who knows & cares for her,’ they wrote on Facebook. 

The family is accepting donations to cover Bethel’s funeral costs through a GoFundMe page. 

Burial arrangements are still being planned.  

***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk