DNA collected at a 2021 drunk-driving stop led to the conviction of the man who killed UNC student Faith Hedgepeth in 2012.
Story Highlights
- On Friday, October 23, a Durham County jury found Miguel Salguero-Olivares guilty of murder, rape and two other first-degree charges.
- He was sentenced to life in prison without parole, so he can never be released early.
- The case sat cold for nine years until his DNA, taken after a 2021 arrest, matched the crime scene.
- He said “It’s not fair” as the verdict was read, and he is appealing.
- Judge Keith Gregory told the family his own son had been a UNC student a year younger than Faith, and he hugged both parents after the hearing.
A Traffic Stop Broke A Cold Case
For nine years, investigators had a single DNA profile from the scene of Faith Hedgepeth’s killing and no name to go with it. That changed in August 2021, when Miguel Salguero-Olivares was stopped for drunk driving and officers took his DNA and fingerprints. His DNA matched the profile found across the crime scene. He had never been named a person of interest, and he was arrested in the murder case on September 16, 2021.
The jury agreed with prosecutors that the DNA put him in that room. He was convicted of first-degree murder, first-degree rape, first-degree burglary and a fourth first-degree charge. First-degree is the most serious level of each crime under North Carolina law. Judge Keith Gregory gave him life without parole for the murder, plus added prison terms for the other charges that will run one after another. He did not testify, and he declined to comment after the verdict on his lawyer’s advice.
The Night Of September 7, 2012
Hedgepeth was 19, a junior studying biology at UNC-Chapel Hill and a member of the Haliwa-Saponi tribe. Her roommate, Karena Rosario, found her dead in their off-campus apartment in Chapel Hill. She had been beaten with a glass Bacardi rum bottle and died of severe blunt force injuries.
Whoever killed her left a note on a white takeout bag. It read, “I’m not stupid. Bitch. Jealous.” Prosecutors argued the odd word order fit a native Spanish speaker, which Salguero-Olivares is. They called him a stranger who killed her in a fit of rage.
What The DNA Showed
Erin Ermish, a scientist at the State Crime Lab, testified about DNA taken from Hedgepeth’s body. She said it was 170 septillion times more likely to be a mix of Hedgepeth’s DNA and his than of hers and an unknown person’s. A septillion is a 1 followed by 24 zeros. Trial testimony also tied his DNA to the rum bottle and the takeout bag. “They still got the guy because he left his DNA like confetti all over that room,” prosecutor Lisa Coltrain told the jury.
There was more than DNA. In 2014, a print analyst found a partial palm print and a thumb print on a blue wine bottle in the bedroom, and prosecutors said those prints were his. Over the years, more than 25 agents from the State Bureau of Investigation, North Carolina’s statewide police agency, worked the case, and more than 400 DNA samples were collected.
How The Defense Fought Back
His lawyers argued that the state had failed to prove its case. They said police did not search some parts of the apartment and later lost some possible blood evidence. They pointed out that DNA from intercourse can stay in the body for days, so finding it did not show when he was there. Under questioning, the print analyst said another print on the wine bottle was never identified and a third was inconclusive. The defense called no witnesses of its own, and the judge barred it from arguing that the roommate was involved. The jury still returned guilty verdicts on every count.
A Family’s Long Wait Ends
Hedgepeth’s parents spoke to the court before the sentence. Her mother, Connie Hedgepeth, said, “I am just glad we have the closure we need, we have peace,” and said she had forgiven what happened. Her father, Roland Hedgepeth, counted the time: “14 years, six weeks and four days.” Judge Gregory told the family his own son had been a UNC student a year younger than Faith, and he hugged both parents after the hearing.
Sources:
chapelboro.com, wral.com, cnn.com, axios.com, heraldsun.com, kansascity.com
