By Gloria Lloyd glloyd@newsobserver.com CHAPEL HILL Police are confi- dent DNA evidence left at the scene of the killing of a UNC-Chapel Hill student in September will provide a break in the case, they announced Tuesday. T h e D N A e v i - dence is the first in- format ion po l i ce h ave re l e a s e d i n months about the d e a t h o f F a i t h Hedgepeth, whose body was found by her roommate Sept. 7 in their apart- ment at 5639 Old Chapel Hill Road, in the Hawthorne at the View apart- ment complex. Investigators initially said they did not think the killing was ran- dom but have since withheld key details of the investigation, includ- ing the cause of death. Police said the concealed information will help them identify suspects who might have information only investigators know. A judge has sealed search warrants in the case for the same reason. The DNA is from a man, accord- ing to an analysis by the N.C. State Crime Lab. Sgt. Josh Mecimore, spokesman for the Chapel Hill Po- lice Department, said police will not reveal anything else about the DNA. He also would not comment on whether police have any current suspects or have ruled out any sus- pects through DNA testing. If the police have probable cause that a certain person could be the killer, they could obtain a sample of the suspect’s DNA through a search warrant. DNA is break in student’s killing Police still guarded with information on slaying of Faith Hedgepeth Hedgepeth SEE STUDENT, PAGE 7B
