Live updates: Murder trial enters second week for man accused of killing UNC student Faith Hedgepeth

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Last updated: Saturday, October 17, 2026 2:29AM GMT

DURHAM, N.C. -- Fourteen years after UNC student Faith Hedgepeth was found murdered in her apartment in Chapel Hill and five years after he was charged with the crime, Miguel Salguero-Olivares is on trial.

Hedgepeth's roommate and another friend found her partially nude and beaten to death in her bedroom on Sept. 7, 2012.

The case went unsolved until Sept. 16, 2021, when Chapel Hill police announced the arrest of Salguero-Olivares.

According to court documents, Salguero-Olivares was on investigators' radar for Hedgepeth's murder.

Authorities used DNA ancestry technology to find Hedgepeth's killer using DNA found in her rape kit, a wine bottle and a white takeout bag, with a vulgar message written by the killer.

The technique identified the suspect's distant family members, who shared his genetic information, according to the report. Those relatives gave interviews and their DNA, which investigators say helped identify Salguero-Olivares.

Oct 22, 2026, 3:25 PM GMT

Final text message from Faith Hedgepeth's phone revealed by SBI agent

SBI Agent Justin Heinrich is walking jurors through Faith Hedgepeth's cellphone activity in the hours before her death. Heinrich testified Faith had only had the phone for a few months, getting it in July.

Jurors were shown records that included:

10:06 p.m.: An outgoing text to Taalib Cochrane saying, "Outside."
11:07 p.m.: An incoming text from Karina Rosario asking, "Are you okay?"
11:14 p.m.: An incoming call from Rosario.
11:18 p.m.: Faith texts Rosario, "I'm sorry. Was on the phone. I'm on my way."
11:57 p.m.: Faith texts Alexis Evans asking, "Are you registered to vote?"
Faith also texts Carmen Wood saying she is at The Thrill.
2:10 a.m.: Rosario texts Faith asking, "Where are you?" around the time The Thrill was closing.
3:40 a.m.: Faith sends Brandon Edwards a message asking him to come over and "please let her know you care."
Faith also sent Ty McNeil a message saying he remained on her mind and that she still loved him.
Later that morning, records showed two calls from Rosario, including one at 8:46 a.m.

Heinrich also testified that Faith worked at the Red Robin at 5313 New Hope Commons Boulevard in Durham.

The state also presented records from Karena Rosario's phone, including texts with Jordan McCrary and Marisol.

Prosecutors asked that Heinrich be accepted as an expert in cellular phone record analysis, and the judge agreed.

Heinrich testified that investigators conducted cell-site, or "tower dump," analysis around The Thrill from midnight to 4 a.m. and Hawthorne at the View from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. on Sept. 7, 2012.

Heinrich said that analysis did not develop any leads in the case.

DNA recovered from Faith's cellphone matched her profile.
DNA recovered from Faith's cellphone matched her profile.
Oct 22, 2026, 3:25 PM GMT

SBI agent describes the scope of the investigation

SBI Agent Justin Heinrich testified that Karina Rosario was consistently cooperative, made herself available to investigators and has kept the same phone number for the past 14 years, even after returning to her home state.

Heinrich said investigators started with the people closest to Faith Hedgepeth and then expanded outward. Faith was very social and had worked at Red Robin since 2011, so investigators also tried to identify people she worked with, classmates and others in her life.

Investigators also interviewed people who had romantic or intimate relationships with Faith. Heinrich testified that her romantic partners were men around her age. Investigators collected DNA from numerous men as part of the investigation, but none matched the DNA they were seeking to identify.

Heinrich said collecting DNA became a major priority. He described Faith's death as a violent assault and testified that, based on the condition of her body and the crime scene, his experience indicated signs of a sexual assault.

With so many people to track, Heinrich said investigators created a spreadsheet to keep up with the individuals they were looking into.

He also noted there were no security videos at Hawthorne at the View at the time.

Justin Heinrich, NC SBI agent
Justin Heinrich, NC SBI agent
Oct 22, 2026, 3:25 PM GMT

SBI agent testifies on DNA collection after Hedgepeth's murder

Justin Heinrich, an 18-year veteran of the North Carolina SBI was on the stand Friday. Heinrich currently serves as a special agent in charge, overseeing the SBI's statewide fugitive program.

Heinrich testified that the SBI was initially asked to assist with crime-scene processing the day after Faith Hedgepeth's murder, but he was not personally involved at that point. He joined the investigation about a year later, when Chapel Hill police requested broader SBI assistance.

Heinrich became one of the SBI's case leads in September 2013. He said it took a month or two to get up to speed, reviewing crime-scene photos, the autopsy, reports and recorded interviews.

Heinrich said investigators interviewed people close to Faith and expanded outward, including classmates and people who had romantic relationships with her. Collecting DNA became a priority, and investigators used a spreadsheet to track the people they investigated and tested.

Justin Heinrich, NC SBI agent
Justin Heinrich, NC SBI agent

Heinrich also testified that he and another agent recently interviewed Karena Rosario, one of the last people to see Faith alive. He described her accounts as "remarkably consistent," prompting an immediate defense objection. He later testified that Rosario has been cooperative with investigators and that her testimony last week was consistent with what she previously told authorities.

Investigators collected DNA from numerous men in Faith's life, and said none of them matched.

Oct 22, 2026, 3:25 PM GMT

Judge calls prosecutors and defense into chambers

Court reconvened at 2 p.m., but proceedings quickly paused as the state and defense disputed evidence prosecutors plan to introduce.

The defense said it had just learned about some of the information, while the state said there are roughly 10 calls and it intends to introduce one phone call, one video call and video from the booking room. The state acknowledged it had not made the defense aware of all of the material.

The defense said it knew about the video call and booking-room video, but was unsure about the third call.

Attorneys went into chambers with the judge to sort out the issue.

Judge Gregory (Friday, Oct. 16, 2026)
Judge Gregory (Friday, Oct. 16, 2026)

The judge tells both sides: "This matter has been going on since September 2012. Plenty of time for parties to get their stuff in order."