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Politics · October 24, 2026

Jury convicts man of rape, murder 14 years after UNC student Faith Hedgepeth’s death

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In October 2026, a jury convicted 33-year-old Miguel Salguero-Olivares of the 2012 murder and rape of Faith Hedgepeth, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Hedgepeth was found beaten to death in her off-campus apartment 14 years prior. Salguero-Olivares was arrested in 2021 following a DNA match obtained after a driving-while-intoxicated stop. The jury deliberated for six hours before returning guilty verdicts for first-degree murder, rape, sexual offense, and burglary, resulting in a life sentence without parole.

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Reported across the spectrum

  • Faith Hedgepeth was a 19-year-old UNC student killed in September 2012.
  • Miguel Salguero-Olivares was convicted of first-degree murder, rape, sexual offense, and burglary.
  • Salguero-Olivares was arrested nine years after the crime following a DNA match from a DWI arrest.
  • The defendant did not testify and his legal team called no witnesses.
  • Jurors deliberated for six hours over two days.

Reported by only some outlets

  • The defendant was sentenced to life in prison without parole plus 45-65 years on additional charges.
  • Faith Hedgepeth's mother, Connie Hedgepeth, stated she had forgiven the killer three weeks after the death.
  • Defense attorneys argued investigators had 'tunnel vision' and suggested the sexual encounter was consensual.

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