Scottsdale woman dies after falling from Circus Circus hotel room after music festival

LAS VEGAS - A 22-year-old Scottsdale woman died after a fall from her hotel room at Circus Circus in Las Vegas last week.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal , Emily McCaughan, a University of Arizona student, was under the influence of Ecstasy after attending the Electric Daisy Carnival at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

A family friend reported that McCaughan and five other friends were taking drugs that night at the rave. Her friends said she began to fall into a panic after taking an Ecstasy pill and believed that someone was stalking her so she left the festival alone early.

The Review-Journal also reports that after she left, she had been sending her friends worried messages and asked them to come help her. She had apparently barricaded the hotel room door and, panicking, took the SIM card out of her phone so no one could track her down.

Ecstasy, a common rave drug, caused her to experience the paranoia and she reportedly fell from her 27th story room just after midnight Monday.

Her body wasn’t found until later by hotel security on top of a third story roof.

McCaughan’s family told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that she wasn’t an avid drug-user nor was she at risk of committing suicide. Instead, it was just a tragic accident.

Her family and friends are remembering her as a wonderful daughter and great friend. She was a pre-med student and had planned on doing charity work later this year, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

A medical examiner confirmed the cause of death yesterday.

Her family has planned a memorial service taking place today.