The friends and family of 27-year-old Lavanya Abburi were shocked last Wednesday after her body was discovered in a pond by her research station at Alabama A&M University. The what and the how of her death has her loved ones as confused as investigators. Not only is the doctoral candidate's cause of death undetermined, but those who are familiar with her agree she had "no reason" to be anywhere near the pond.

Abburi had only been in the state since spring 2014 when she enrolled in Alabama A&M's biological and environmental sciences department. She came here to study watermelon traits and biotechnology after completing her second master's degree at West Virginia State University. Before these two American universities, Abburi lived her entire life in India. Her family hails from the rural farming village of Peddareddy Palem, Narsaraopet, Andhra Pradesh, where her parents still live.

Abburi's fellows at Alabama A&M told AL.com they were all confused about how she could have been in that pond. Not only is it about 1,200 yards away from her workstation, but she was scared of water and always steered clear of the pond. Her A&M research supervisor, Rao Mentreddy, said she was even afraid to drive in the rain.

He and fellow students all said her work was with plants and had nothing to do with the pond so there was never any reason to be near it in the first place.

Madison County sheriff's deputies agree with this assessment and are so far just as baffled by her death. Sheriff's department spokesman Jeremy Hughes said investigators agree Abburi had a strong aversion to water.

Hughes said the death investigation remains ongoing. He said learning why she was there at all is a large piece that remains missing. There were no witnesses, and the Winfred Thomas Agricultural Research Station Farm has no security cameras to review. There are no outdoor lights either.

"It's a puzzling question for us," Hughes said.

Mentreddy said she not only would have avoided that pond, but there was no reason for her to be at the Walker Lane research station at all because there were no plants to tend to. The growing season has not yet started, and it would be months before the seeds were planted and mature enough to be moved to the station.

The autopsy has been a dead end so far. No conclusive cause of death has been determined. Further tests are being conducted. Meanwhile, Abburi's body is being prepared for transfer back to India. Madison County Coroner Bobby Berryhill said the paperwork is going through now.

There are more unclear factors here. Abburi's car was at the scene, but Mentreddy said investigators told him her car keys and cell phone have not been found. Hughes said the department cannot confirm specific details because this is an ongoing investigation.

Abburi's sister noticed markings on her arms and neck, but it is unclear how this happened. Hughes confirmed she had some markings on her, but what they are cannot be confirmed until further forensics tests come back.

In relation to Abburi's fear of water was the weather. Research station workers found her body the morning of April 1. The night before was a rainy one, according to the National Weather Service. And friends re-emphasized she did not like to drive in the rain.

Abburi's friends describe her as an overall happy and compassionate person who was also quiet and introverted. They all say she seemed cheerful in the weeks leading up to her death.

Her West Virginia State University supervisor, Umesh Reddy, said Abburi has extremely happy in the months before her death because her research was published n the "Journal of Heredity." This was her sixth co-authored peer-reviewed publication, which is far more than the average graduate student produces. Her professors all said this thrilled her.

Another Alabama A&M professor, Sadguna Anasuri, said she always seemed cheerful. Anasuri was close with Abburi but was not her professor. They shared a fellowship through Madison County's Indian community.

Anasuri said she never showed signs of anything wrong during their regular chats. She said Abburi seemed a little down occasionally during the last few weeks but had just as many happy instances. She said their last conversation consisted of discussing summer plans and Abburi's new haircut, and the graduate student seemed content.

Other friends and former roommates all agreed that nothing seemed wrong.