Man arrested after woman found dead at luxury hotel in Midtown Atlanta
A man was arrested Monday, accused of killing a woman whose body was found last month in a room at a luxury Midtown hotel, officials said.
Emmanuel Poindexter is accused of breaking Melissa Tibbetts’ hyoid bone, which is in the neck, and striking her several times, “resulting in her death,” according to arrest warrants obtained Tuesday by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Tibbetts, 45, was found dead Oct. 14 after Atlanta officers were called to a room at the Loews Atlanta Hotel on Peachtree Street.
Just over a week later, Atlanta police said they had identified Poindexter as a suspect “directly involved in the incident,” but authorities said he was receiving treatment for a “self-inflicted knife wound” in Gwinnett County. After he was medically cleared, Poindexter was booked into the Fulton County Jail on charges of murder and aggravated battery, police said.
The two shared a Lawrenceville address, according to Georgia voter and Fulton court records. Authorities did not provide a motive or release details on Poindexter’s injury.
His attorney could not immediately be reached for comment.
On Tuesday, Poindexter appeared in court and was denied bond by a magistrate judge. He is expected back in court for a preliminary hearing in early December, online records showed.
According to Tibbetts’ obituary, she was a mother and worked as an executive assistant. A GoFundMe campaign meant to help cover funeral costs described her as someone with an “adventurous spirit” who loved the ocean and had a special bond with her son.
The Loews Atlanta Hotel is on the corner of 11th and Peachtree streets, an address it shares with several restaurants. Luxury condos occupy the floors above the hotel.
A representative for Loews Atlanta could not immediately be reached for comment.