Case overview
Faith Hedgepeth, a 19-year-old University of North Carolina student, was found beaten to death in her off-campus apartment on September 7, 2012. DNA evidence from the crime scene would eventually lead to an arrest in 2021, but the nine-year gap exposed contradictions in witness accounts and unanswered questions about the hours before her death.
The final night
On September 6, 2012, Faith Hedgepeth went to the Thrill nightclub in Chapel Hill with her roommate, Karena Rosario. The two left around 2:30 a.m. and returned to their shared apartment at the Hawthorne at the View complex. Security footage and phone records placed them at the residence by 3:00 a.m.
At approximately 4:25 a.m., Rosario left the apartment. She told investigators she went to visit a male friend and that Hedgepeth was asleep when she left. Rosario returned around 11:00 a.m. and found Hedgepeth unresponsive on the bedroom floor. Emergency responders arrived at 11:01 a.m. and pronounced her dead at the scene.
The medical examiner determined Hedgepeth died from blunt force trauma to the head. The murder weapon was believed to be an empty rum bottle found in the bedroom. Investigators documented signs of a struggle and collected biological evidence from multiple surfaces.
What the crime scene revealed
Chapel Hill police recovered DNA from several items, including the murder weapon, a white plastic bag tied around Hedgepeth’s head, and a pen used to write a note left at the scene. The handwritten message on a takeout bag read, “I’m not stupid bitch jealous.” Investigators also documented semen on Hedgepeth’s body, which was later determined through DNA testing to belong to a different individual than the primary suspect.
A 911 call was placed from Hedgepeth’s phone at 1:23 a.m., roughly two hours before Rosario said she left the apartment. The call captured background noise and indistinct voices but no clear conversation. The timing and content became a point of scrutiny in the investigation.
Authorities collected fingerprints, additional biological material, and personal items from the apartment. They reviewed surveillance footage from nearby businesses and the apartment complex, though no cameras captured the entrance to the unit.
The investigation and early suspects
Chapel Hill police interviewed dozens of people in the days following the murder of Faith Hedgepeth, including Rosario, the male friend she visited that morning, and several individuals who interacted with Hedgepeth at the nightclub. No arrests were made in the immediate aftermath.
Rosario’s timeline and statements became a focal point. She told police she left the apartment around 4:25 a.m. and did not return until late morning, but the 1:23 a.m. 911 call raised questions about what happened in the hours between the time she said Hedgepeth was asleep and when she left.
Another early subject of interest was Hedgepeth’s ex-boyfriend, Eriq Takoy Jones. Text messages between Hedgepeth and friends referenced tensions in their relationship, and police interviewed Jones multiple times. He cooperated with the investigation and provided DNA samples, which did not match evidence from the crime scene. He was never charged.
In 2016, Chapel Hill police publicly acknowledged the case had gone cold but emphasized that DNA evidence remained a priority. Investigators submitted samples to state and federal databases and continued working with forensic specialists to refine testing methods.
The DNA breakthrough and arrest
On September 16, 2021, Chapel Hill police arrested Miguel Enrique Salguero-Olivares and charged him with first-degree murder. Authorities identified Salguero-Olivares through genetic genealogy, a technique that compares crime scene DNA to public genealogy databases to identify potential relatives of a suspect.
Salguero-Olivares, who was 28 at the time of his arrest, had been living in Durham, North Carolina. According to court documents, DNA recovered from the crime scene matched a sample taken from Salguero-Olivares following his arrest. Investigators stated that he had no known connection to Hedgepeth and that the motive for the killing remained unclear.
Salguero-Olivares was held without bond. His defense attorneys challenged the DNA evidence and questioned the reliability of genetic genealogy methods, but a judge ruled the evidence admissible in pre-trial hearings.
What remained unresolved
The arrest did not answer all questions surrounding the murder of Faith Hedgepeth. Investigators did not publicly explain how Salguero-Olivares entered the apartment or whether he knew Rosario or anyone else in the social circle documented that night. The 1:23 a.m. 911 call was never fully explained, and authorities did not clarify whether it was connected to the events leading to Hedgepeth’s death.
The semen found on Hedgepeth’s body did not match Salguero-Olivares, and police stated it was not considered evidence of the murder itself. The individual whose DNA matched that evidence was identified and interviewed but not charged.
Hedgepeth’s family expressed relief at the arrest but also frustration with the length of time it took to identify a suspect. Her father, Roland Hedgepeth, told reporters he hoped the trial would provide answers about what happened in the hours before his daughter’s death.
Trial and outcome
In June 2022, Miguel Salguero-Olivares entered an Alford plea to second-degree murder. An Alford plea allows a defendant to maintain innocence while acknowledging that prosecutors have enough evidence to secure a conviction. Salguero-Olivares was sentenced to 14 to 18 years in prison.
Prosecutors did not present a full narrative of the crime during the plea hearing, citing the plea agreement and the fact that no trial would occur. The decision frustrated some observers who had followed the case and sought clarity on the events of September 7, 2012.
Chapel Hill police released a statement following the sentencing, emphasizing the role of forensic technology in solving the case and acknowledging the persistence of Hedgepeth’s family in keeping public attention on the investigation.
Where to look next
- Documentary: “Who Killed the Co-Ed? The Murder of Faith Hedgepeth” (Oxygen)
- Book: “The Murder of Faith Hedgepeth: An Examination of the Case and the Legal Process” by C. Michael Pate
- Podcast: “Faith Hedgepeth” (“Crime Junkie”, Audiochuck)
