A promising 23-year-old Fort Valley State University student disappeared on Valentine’s Day 2020 after being seen at the home of her boyfriend, DeMarcus Little. A multi-agency task force searched for her; her body was found days later in a wooded area in Crawford County. An autopsy determined death by strangulation and ruled the death a homicide.

Investigators identified DeMarcus Little as a person of interest and arrested him soon after the body was found, initially on charges tied to an earlier incident in which he allegedly threw a brick through the victim’s apartment window and slashed her tires. Prosecutors say an argument occurred after a party at Little’s aunt’s home and that Little strangled the victim. A friend, Jaivon Abron, was arrested on charges of concealing a death and making false statements; at trial Abron testified that Little confessed, saying he blacked out and hit her before dumping the body. The prosecution also presented unusual texts sent from the victim’s phone after her death that they say were intended to mislead investigators.

After a week-long trial the jury convicted DeMarcus Little of felony murder and aggravated assault but acquitted him of malice murder; the judge sentenced him to life in prison without parole. Does anyone have information about the victim’s movements that night or about the party at Little’s aunt’s home?