Man gets life without parole for 2012 murder of North Carolina student, 19
Miguel Salguero Olivares has been sentenced to life in prison without parole for the 2012 murder and sexual assault of University of North Carolina student Faith Hedgepeth. The conviction was secured nearly a decade later using advanced DNA evidence collected from the crime scene.
Why it matters
The case demonstrates the power of cold-case forensic technology in achieving justice for victims of violent crimes long after the initial investigation stalled.
A man has been sentenced to life in prison without parole for the 2012 murder of University of North Carolina student Faith Hedgepeth, ending a case that remained unsolved for nearly a decade before DNA evidence led investigators to a suspect.Miguel Salguero Olivares, 33, was convicted on Friday of first-degree murder, rape, sexual offence and burglary. He was arrested in 2021 after a DNA sample collected during a driving-under-the-influence stop allegedly matched evidence recovered from the crime scene.Jurors deliberated for six hours over two days before reaching their verdict. Along with the life sentence for murder, Salguero Olivares received an additional 45 to 65 years in prison for the other offences.Hedgepeth was 19 and a sophomore at the university when she was found beaten to death in her off-campus apartment in September 2012.
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