Murder Under the Friday Night Lights: What Happened to the Silsbee cheerleader Tristan Dilley?

Tristan Dilley, a cheerleader at Silsbee High School, was found murdered with two gunshot wounds on her head on October 1, 2017. Dilley was home alone at her mother's house in Buna when she was visited by her 19-year-old boyfriend, Paul Audrey Adams.

Her second-floor bedroom showed no signs of struggle or forced entry which made Adams the person of interest to the investigators from Jasper County Sheriff's Office. However, he refused to speak to the police face to face and took his life the following day, leaving behind a note stating his innocence in the matter.

The Murder Under the Friday Night Lights episode titled A Homecoming Murder showcases the confounding details of Tristan Dilley's murder. The synopsis reads:

"The family of a high school cheerleader finds her murdered in her room the night after the homecoming dance; detectives surmise that she knew her killer, and because so many people are back in town for the big football game, everybody is a suspect."

The episode aired on January 24, 2024, at 11 p.m. EST on Investigation Discovery.

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What Happened to the Silsbee cheerleader Tristan Dilley?

Tristan Dilley, a 14-year-old freshman at Silsbee High School, was found face-down with two gunshot wounds to her head on October 1, 2017. She was a cheerleader at Silsbee High School and was dating a 19-year-old nursing student at Lamar State College, Paul Audrey Adams.

However, Adams' true identity was revealed after Tristan was found dead as the two had reportedly been deceiving Dilley's parents owing to the age difference. Her family had been aware of a "tall and lanky" 16-year-old high school basketball player by the name of Adam.

However, the Jasper County Sheriff's Office dug through Tristan's cellphone records to find the true identity of her boyfriend.

Sheriff’s Lt. Ryan Cunningham spoke to PEOPLE saying:

“Both kids were deceiving the parents. He [Adams] knew he was too old to be seeing the child.”

Tristan Dilley had been at her school dance, followed by a sleepover at a friend's place on September 30, 2017. She decided to stay home the following day as she alleged to be tired from the night out.

As her family stepped out for shopping, Tristan invited Adams over to her house. When her parents returned home later in the evening, Tristan's mother called for her. Upon no response, she sent her 13-year-old brother for her assuming she was asleep.

Tristan Dilley was found face down in her bed with two gunshot wounds to her head made by a .22 caliber magnum revolver.

The police from the Jasper CountySheriff's Office immediately identified Paul Audrey Adams as a person of interest as they found their text messages.

As Texas Rangers tracked his Vidor residence, they found him to be away from home and questioned his mother, who informed them of an alleged home invasion by a gunman at the County Road 784 residence of Bonnie Coon.

Paul Adams had allegedly called his mother during the interrogation when the officer persuaded him for a statement adding that he could be a useful witness in the case. However, he hung up and was subsequently traced to a camping site at a secluded stretch of FM 1135 in Orange County.

Paul Audrey Adams took his life with a .22 caliber magnum revolver leaving a note claiming his innocence.