Investigation Discovery Faith Hedgepeth and Karena Rosario in "Who Killed the Co-Ed? An ID Murder Mystery"
UPDATE: The Durham police department arrested Miguel Enrique Salguero-Olivares, 28, on Sept. 16, 2021 in connection with Hedgepeth’s 2012 murder, according to ABC11.
The original post continues below.
When 19-year-old UNC student Faith Hedgepeth was murdered in 2012, the 911 call came from her roommate, Karena Rosario. To this day, Hedgepeth’s father, Roland, thinks Rosario knows more than she is telling about their daughter’s murder. Ahead of the Investigation Discovery special about Hedgepeth, titled Who Killed the Co-Ed? An ID Murder Mystery, here’s what you need to know about Rosario and Hedgepeth’s final hours together and why Hedgepeth’s family thinks Rosario knows more than she is letting on.
Rosario Says Hedgepeth Was In Bed Asleep The Last Time She Saw Her
The night Hedgepeth died, the two girls had gone to a club called The Thrill in downtown Chapel Hill. They returned home around 3 a.m. and then at 4:30, Rosario left. She later told police Hedgepeth was in bed asleep when she left. When she returned home several hours later, she found Hedgepeth had been bludgeoned to death with what authorities would later identify as an empty Bacardi rum bottle.
Hedgepeth had also been sexually assaulted; police found DNA and semen at the scene that they believe came from the killer.
The 911 Call Sounded Suspicious to Hedgepeth’s Family
The ID special has the 911 audio, which says, “Hi, um, I just walked into my apartment and my friend, like, she’s unconscious. … She’s unconscious. I just walked into the apartment and there’s blood everywhere … It looks like someone came in here. It really does. I just can’t believe this. Someone had to have been in there.”
Two investigators say on camera they think it sounds fake, like Rosario “might have been offering up a theory about what happened to Faith to steer suspicion away from her.”
Another added, “She doesn’t mention Faith’s name at all. She doesn’t even say ‘my roommate.’ That’s sort of a way to distance yourself. … I felt that the 911 call was fake.”
There Was a Note
Scrawled on a fast-food bag was the note, “IM NOT STUPID. BITCH. JEALOUS.” In 2018, Investigation Discovery examined this case for Breaking Homicide: The Final Theory. During that special, a handwriting analyst told the network that they thought the hand-written note was written by a female. And Hedgepeth’s father, Roland, told ID that, “Everything in my mind starts with Karena … this case is not as complicated as it’s made to seem.”
There’s Also Hedgepeth’s Chilling Last Voicemail
There was also a voicemail that Hedgepeth accidentally left on her friend Euna Chavis’ phone via pocket-dial. It was initially dismissed as evidence because the timestamp put it as being made while the girls were still at the nightclub, plus it was too garbled and staticky to make out any audio.
But in 2016, Arlo West, a forensic audio expert, analyzed the voicemail and what he found led him to believe they “had some evidence here that would help solve this case.”
He identified two male voices and two female voices on the recording. In it, he said one female was in obvious distress. You can hear her calling for help and saying, “Ow, my head!”
He also said female No. 2 could be heard threatening female No. 1, saying, “F*ck you, I’m pissed. I’m gonna kick your face, b*tch. I figured out that bullsh*t. You liar. You intentionally lied. Don’t be a p*ssy, put up a fight.”
Then after female No. 2 says “do it,” a male voice can be heard saying, “”I think she’s dying.”
Finally, two names can be heard on the voicemail — one of the males could be heard saying, “I can’t believe that you really did it, Rosie,” and female No. 2 said, “go help Eric.”
West said, “I did wonder if Rosie might be a nickname for Karena Rosario, and this name Eric could be from her boyfriend, Eric Takoy Jones.”
Hedgepeth’s family members say they are certain they can hear Hedgepeth screaming for help and that the other female is Rosario, who was sometimes called “Rosie.”
Who Killed the Co-Ed? An ID Murder Mystery airs Thursday, May 28 at 9 p.m. ET/PT and is being rebroadcast Friday, May 29 at midnight ET/PT on Investigation Discovery.
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