A woman whose body was found after a fire at a northeast Georgia cabin was bludgeoned to death, authorities said Tuesday.
The Habersham County coroner has ruled the woman’s death a homicide after a GBI autopsy showed she died as a result of blunt force injuries to her head, according to Habersham sheriff’s spokesman Lt. Matt Wurtz. She has been identified as 43-year-old Alecia Grace Stover of Alto.
Stover’s body was discovered Saturday morning inside the charred cabin on Yonah Post Road in Alto, a small town just south of Baldwin that borders the Chattahoochee National Forest. Photos of the blaze shared by the sheriff's office showed the log building completely engulfed in flames.
RELATED: Woman found dead after North Georgia cabin fire
Hours after the discovery, deputies took Jeramy Ray Chastain into custody following a traffic stop. Chastain and Stover had been in an “on-and-off relationship,” Wurtz said.
Credit: Baldwin Police Department
Credit: Baldwin Police Department
He was arrested on charges of criminal trespass and making false statements in connection with the fire investigation, but he was not facing charges in the woman’s death. No further update on the homicide investigation was provided Tuesday.
MORE: Northeast Georgia man arrested in connection with deadly cabin fire, authorities say
According to the sheriff’s office, the fire is being investigated as an arson. The state fire marshal’s office was expected to make a final determination on cause.
— Please return to AJC.com for updates.
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