The identify of a woman whose body was found on the University of Georgia’s campus on Thursday has been revealed.
Athens-Clarke County Coroner Sonny Wilson on Friday said that the deceased woman is 22-year-old Laken Hope Riley. Augusta University’s College of Nursing confirmed that Riley was a student at its campus in Athens, the Georgia city where UGA is also located, according to multiple news reports.
Wilson said that Riley’s cause of the death is set to be determined once the student’s body is examined Friday, according to CNN.
Law enforcement has launched an investigation into Riley’s death, the second fatality linked to UGA’s campus this week.
According to a statement from the university, UGA police received a call at around noon on Thursday from an individual who was concerned about a friend who went for a run at the campus’ intramural fields that morning and hadn’t returned.
After searching the area, the police found Riley unconscious and with visible injuries in a wooded area near an on-campus lake at around 12:38 p.m. Paramedics determined she was dead upon their arrival.
During a press conference on Thursday evening, university police chief Jeff Clark confirmed that Riley was not a UGA student, but was a student at a separate college. He declined to disclose the name of the college.
The incident is actively being investigated by UGA and county police and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Police are monitoring and taking note of license plates of the vehicles leaving the parking lot near where Riley’s body was found, 11Alive News reported.
UGA has canceled its classes for the remainder of the week, and they will resume on Monday. Augusta University’s College of Nursing has also canceled its Friday classes. The UGA police are urging people to avoid the area as the ongoing investigation proceeds.
In a statement on Thursday, UGA said that “foul play” is suspected in the incident, adding that “safety and welfare of our campus community is our top concern.” No suspect has been identified yet, Clark said, but he added that there is “no immediate danger.”
“My investigators will be working this case day and night, and they will be looking at every camera that we have,” he said.
In an unrelated case, a student died by suicide on UGA’s campus Wednesday night. The school wrote in a statement that “the past 24 hours have been a traumatic time for our University,” referencing the fatalities. There is no connection between the two deaths, Clark confirmed.
“As we continue to mourn that tragic loss of life, today’s devastating news will uniquely test the resolve of our campus community, particularly our students,” UGA wrote in the statement.
Marita Vlachou contributed reporting.