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‘Getting justice for Michelle’: Suspect arrested in slaying of woman near Sacramento RT station

Homicide detectives arrested man accused of raping and beating to death a woman whose body was found eight months ago near a light rail station in Sacramento’s Meadowview neighborhood.

Jaquane Baldwin-Badger, 22, was arrested on suspicion of murder in the death of Michelle Benavidez, 30, the Sacramento Police Department announced Thursday in a news release. Her body was found shortly after 1 p.m. May 14 in the 3000 block of Florin Road.

Baldwin-Badger, who had been in custody at a state prison since July in an unrelated case, was booked at the Sacramento County Main Jail on Wednesday afternoon. He also faces a charge of rape by force, violence, duress, menace or fear in Benavidez’s death, according to jail records.

Since her body was discovered, Benavidez’s family, friends and other volunteers have sought the public’s help in the investigation of the woman’s suspicious death. They’ve walked along busy streets in the Meadowview area, posting flyers asking for information. Her family also commissioned a mural along Arden Way near Del Paso Boulevard in hopes that renewed attention could lead to an arrest.

Paula Gardner, her aunt, said on Thursday that the Benavidez family was happy to learn this suspect has been charged with her niece’s murder.

“This isn’t over. By all means. This is just a step closer,” Gardner told The Sacramento Bee. “This doesn’t take away the pain but it is a step in getting justice for Michelle. The emotions we are experiencing are not only happy but sad and angry. She went through something traumatic and knowing that hurts.”

Authorities had not released any details about how the woman died until Thursday. Benavidez had suffered serious injuries, and detectives worked with the Sacramento County Coroner’s Office to later determine her the injuries were from “a physical assault,” police said.

Detectives conducted numerous interviews, reviewed videos and served several search warrants during the lengthy investigation before they identified Baldwin-Badger as the suspect in the homicide, according to the Police Department.

The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office on Dec. 30 filed a criminal complaint against Baldwin-Badger, which included the murder and rape charges, according to Sacramento Superior Court records. He was being held Thursday at the jail without bail and was scheduled to make his first court appearance in the case Friday afternoon.

In September 2019, Baldwin-Badger was arrested on suspicion of burglary after he broke into a young woman’s home near Chico State University, laid naked next to her bed and left with stolen items, according to the Chico Police Department.

The victim woke up and confronted the burglary suspect, who then left the home. Police said Baldwin-Badger was arrested with items taken from the victim’s home.

Butte Superior Court records show Baldwin-Badger in September 2020 pleaded no contest to first-degree burglary in the Chico break-in. He returned to court on that case this summer after a Butte County judge on June 25 issued a warrant for his arrest on suspicion of violating his probation.

Michelle Benavidez was found dead about 1:10 p.m. May 14, 2021, in the 3000 block of Florin Road, just east of 29th Street in Sacramento, California.
Michelle Benavidez was found dead about 1:10 p.m. May 14, 2021, in the 3000 block of Florin Road, just east of 29th Street in Sacramento, California.

Benavidez’s family says the young woman was well-liked and had no ongoing disputes with anyone. Benavidez lived with roommates in Sacramento’s Pocket neighborhood. She was unemployed, but she had worked as a waitress at different IHOP resturants throughout Sacramento. Her aunt said her niece was still trying to find where her life would take her.

Her mother last spoke to Benavidez on a phone call the night before her body was discovered. She has said her daughter was having problems with her cellphone.

“She was going to charge her phone and call me back,” Rachel Benavidez told The Bee in May. “But I never heard back from her.”