Family, Judge and Investigators Respond After Guilty Verdict in 2012 Killing of UNC Student Faith Hedgepeth

A Durham courtroom was filled with emotion on Friday after a jury found Miguel Salguero Olivares guilty of first-degree murder, rape, sexual offense and burglary in the 2012 death of University of North Carolina student Faith Hedgepeth. The case had gone unsolved for more than a decade.

After the verdict, Judge Keith Gregory invited members of the Hedgepeth family to speak. He also addressed Salguero Olivares before sentencing, moments after the jury returned its decision.

Faith's mother, Connie Hedgepeth, said she felt peace after waiting more than 14 years for answers. "I'm just glad that we have the closure we need. I have peace and I forgave," she said. She added that her heart also aches for Salguero Olivares' family, calling the crime "such a senseless and cruel act." She thanked the Durham County District Attorney's Office, the Chapel Hill Police Department, the State Bureau of Investigation and the jurors.

Judge Gregory, visibly emotional, spoke to the family as a fellow parent. He noted that his own son is one year younger than Faith. "We're not supposed to watch our children leave this earth before we do," he said.

Faith's niece, Alexis Evans, said she was grateful the family would not carry uncertainty into the holidays. She told the court that the loss is felt "in every event, every moment, every place we go." Another relative, Schylar Steverson, said she was a high school junior preparing for college when Faith, who was 19, was killed, and that she felt most unsafe at college afterward. She described years of fear and anxiety but said the verdict brought healing. "Today I take back that power," she said.

Faith's father, Roland Hedgepeth, became emotional as he remembered his daughter, saying she "never judged me" and "always loved me unconditionally." Speaking to the convicted man, he said he had no right to take her life. He said his faith requires him to forgive and that he would pray Salguero Olivares repents.

The State Bureau of Investigation issued a statement afterward describing the scale of the effort. According to the agency, the case took "nine years and nine days to solve" and involved more than 25 special agents working with the Chapel Hill Police Department. Investigators followed thousands of leads, conducted hundreds of interviews, and collected and tested more than 400 DNA samples.

The SBI stressed that it never treated the case as a cold case, because investigators kept actively pursuing leads over the years. It said the case is now used to train new agents at the SBI Academy and left a lasting mark on the investigators, prosecutors and law enforcement personnel involved. SBI Director Chip Hawley praised the agencies involved for their "hard work, determination, and dedication," calling it a monumental case in the agency's history.

A press conference followed at the Durham County Courthouse on Friday afternoon. Durham County District Attorney Satana Deberry, members of the prosecution team, the Chapel Hill police chief and Faith Hedgepeth's family all made statements.