Fiancé of S.C. woman whose skull was found in Gwinnett arrested on murder charge
A man living in Gwinnett County has been arrested and charged with murder after a human skull found in April was identified as his missing fiancé, officials said.
Michael Wilkerson, 42, originally from Greenville, South Carolina, was taken into custody in Lawrenceville and has been extradited to his hometown, Gwinnett police spokeswoman Hideshi Valle said in a news release Tuesday. He is accused of killing 32-year-old Brittany Davis, who is also from Greenville.
Wilkerson was arrested and booked into the Gwinnett County Jail on Aug. 24 and then extradited a week later, online jail records show. He is being held on one count of murder in the Greenville County Detention Center without bond, a Greenville police spokesman said.
The case in Gwinnett began in April when police found a human skull in the woods near the 2700 block of Hamilton Mill Road in Buford, Valle said. The Gwinnett medical examiner’s office quickly determined that the skull belonged to a woman between the ages of 20 and 35 years old, but it was not until months later that they partnered with the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division to positively identify the remains as Davis.
Davis and Wilkerson had been living together in Greenville before her family reported her missing in March 2020, Fox Carolina reported. Sometime after Davis’ disappearance, Wilkerson moved to Lawrenceville and was living about 13 miles from the area where Davis’ skull was found.
Davis’ family hopes the news of Wilkerson’s arrest will help bring additional witnesses or evidence to the surface in her case.
“We are hoping that news coverage of what has happened may jog someone’s memory here in Gwinnett,” Bridgett Brown, Davis’ aunt, said in an email to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Someone may have seen or had dealings with Michael Wilkerson and unknowingly may have details regarding my niece’s murder or the dumping of her body.”
Gwinnett police said the motive for Davis’ murder is still unknown and have asked anyone with information about the case to contact the Greenville Police Department. Tips can be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers of Greenville at greenville.crimestoppersweb.com or by calling 864-232-7463.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
About the Authors
Henri Hollis is a reporter and restaurant critic for the Food & Dining team. Formerly a freelance writer and photographer with a focus on food and restaurants, he joined the AJC full-time in January 2021, first covering breaking news. He is a lifelong Atlantan and a graduate of Georgia Tech.
