DOUGLASVILLE, Ga. -- Police arrested a man in the killing of a popular third-grade teacher.
Katie Parvu’s body was found in her Douglasville town home on Saturday after deputies received a tip.
Sheriff’s department officials said the 31-year-old woman had been dead for days and that she was the victim of a homicide.
“Her body was badly decomposed. She was inside the home and it was very, very hot and the air conditioning was not running,” said Chief Deputy Stan Copeland of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputies arrested Ladell Batiste in connection with the killing. He is being held without bond on a felony charge of concealing a death.
“You look at someone who conceals a person’s death and you have to ask, ‘Why?’ But that’s as far as we can go right now. There is no evidence linking him to her death at this point,” said Copeland.
Investigators said Batiste, who they called a “person of interest,” lived in the same neighborhood as Parvu.
Authorities said they know how Parvu died, but they will not release the information. In an effort to allay fear in the community, police said they believe Parvu knew her killer and possibly let the person into her home.
Parvu had been a teacher at Sweetwater Elementary for four years.
Principal Teresa Martin said, “We will miss her. We’ll miss her sense of humor and her professionalism.”
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