Police urged people to avoid the “general area” around Lake Harrick, where a woman was killed earlier Thursday, while the investigation into her death is ongoing.
“When you have a suspect that’s on the loose, there’s always a danger, but there is no immediate danger at this time,” University of Georgia Police Chief Jeffrey Clark said at a news conference Thursday night. No suspect has been identified, he said.
Clark said the victim was not a student at UGA, but was a student at another school, although he declined to say which. He also would not identify the victim, or describe her injuries or manner of death, saying the active nature of the investigation prevented him from giving out much information.
Thursday afternoon, the university said that “foul play is suspected” in the woman’s death, and Clark’s comments confirmed that police are investigating her death as a murder. It was the first murder on the UGA campus in at least 20 years, according to Clarke, who was a longtime Athens-Clarke County police officer before taking over as chief at UGA last year.
The GBI and ACCPD are assisting in the investigation. Mayor Kelly Girtz issued the following statement on social media:
According to UGA police, they received at call at approximately 12:07 p.m. from a person who worried that their friend had gone jogging at the Intramural Fields on Thursday morning and had not come back. At 12:38 p.m., police found the jogger unconscious and not breathing with visible injuries, and after rendering first aid she was declared dead on the scene.
Asked whether a camera could have caught the murder, Clark could not say, but he said police will be examining every video available.
“We’re not going to leave any rock unturned in this investigation,” he said.
In combination with the death of a student at Brumby Hall less than 24 hours earlier, UGA canceled Friday’s classes. The two deaths were unrelated, according to Clark.
“The past 24 hours have been a traumatic time for our University,” the administration said in a statement. “Our student body is grieving the sudden death of one our students in Brumby Hall last night. And as we continue to mourn that tragic loss of life, today’s devastating news will uniquely test the resolve of our campus community, particularly our students.”
Like what you just read? Support Flagpole by making a donation today. Every dollar you give helps fund our ongoing mission to provide Athens with quality, independent journalism.
