JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man was arrested in the death of an 18-year-old, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said Monday.
Jeffery Antione Edwards, 19, is charged with murder, according to police.
On Jan. 7, police said, a body was found alongside the Trout River. Family members confirmed that the body was that of Santeria Williams, a senior at Ribault High School who had just turned 18 in November.
Family members described her as a loving person who would go out of her way for others.
Her mother told JSO that Williams went to bed at her home at Calloway Cove Apartments around 9 p.m. Jan. 4, and when the mother woke up the next morning, Williams was gone, according to a missing person report.
The mother had a phone conversation with a friend of Williams’, who said she was hanging out with friends and was fine, the report stated. The mother kept calling Williams, but the calls all went to voicemail, according to the report.
Detectives said Monday that they identified Edwards as a suspect and arrested him.
News4JAX spoke with Deborah Caul, Williams’ grandmother.
“The investigation paid off, and I’m glad they did what they needed to charge him with her murder,” Caul said.
Caul said Williams and Edwards were acquainted with one another.
“I don’t know what their relationship was,” Caul said. “I know she knew him through school.”
According to Duval County jail records, Edwards was arrested Jan. 12 on charges of attempted murder and armed robbery, and the murder charge was added Monday.
His next court date is Thursday.