Authorities have announced the arrest of a suspect in the murder of Tara Baker, a University of Georgia student, more than two decades after the crime took place.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has announced that Edrick Lamont Faust, aged 48, has been charged with murder and is facing several other charges in relation to the death of a 23-year-old first-year law student.
“Tara Louise Baker had a promising future ahead of her as a diligent student,” stated GBI Director Chris Hosey in a news release on Thursday. “Her life was tragically taken away from her in a heinous act of violence. Although this arrest cannot bring her back, I sincerely hope that it brings some degree of closure to the Baker family as they navigate their path to healing.”
In January 2001, firefighters from Athens-Clarke County made a grim discovery when they found Baker’s lifeless body in her apartment. The fire that had engulfed the place raised suspicions of a possible murder and an attempt to conceal the crime. Over the course of the next 23 years, investigators, in collaboration with the FBI, Athens-Clarke County Police Department, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, tirelessly worked to substantiate these suspicions and solve the perplexing cold case.
After 23 years, an Athens man has been charged with murder by the GBI and the Athens-Clarke County Police Department for the death of Tara Louise Baker, a 23-year-old UGA law school student.
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— GA Bureau of Investigation (@GBI_GA) May 9, 2024
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation Cold Case Unit conducted a thorough review of Baker’s case in September 2023, following the enactment of the Coleman-Baker Act. This comprehensive review ultimately enabled authorities to gather sufficient evidence to proceed with the arrest. To shed more light on the investigation, the GBI has announced that a news conference will be held in the near future.
The Coleman-Baker Act, named in honor of Sue Coleman and Tara Baker, two individuals tragically lost 21 years ago, was officially enacted into law by Governor Brian Kemp in 2023. This groundbreaking legislation introduced a dedicated unit within the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, specifically tasked with investigating cold cases. Additionally, the act mandated that law enforcement agencies reexamine unsolved cases that had remained unresolved for more than six years.
“After the arrest was announced, Kemp took to social media to express his hope that Tara’s memory will be kept alive through the positive efforts of this Unit.”
In a statement, her family expressed their gratitude to law enforcement and acknowledged that while they had long prayed for this day, it is not without its share of grief and unanswered questions.
