CINCINNATI — The woman found dead near Woodward High School last week was charged in an armed motel robbery in Daphne, Alabama, two days earlier, according to police there.
The Hamilton County Coroner’s Office identified her Monday as 18-year-old Baylee Elizabeth Wall and ruled her death a homicide.
Daphne police said Wall and 25-year-old Gary Alexander Eubanks, Jr., both from Alabama, robbed the Microtel Inn on Hwy 98 on Oct. 21. Eubanks is still at large. They were believed to be driving a black 2015 Volkswagen Passat with Mississippi tag JGE1791. Both were charged with robbery in the first degree.
The coroner's office hasn't confirmed how Wall died, but police said they were responding to a call of shots fired when they found her body on the night of Oct. 23 in the 1600 block of Sternblock Lane. Lt. William Suter said the body was found in a lot south of the school.
Unable to identify her at first, police on Friday released photos of Wall's tattoos, clothing and jewelry in hopes someone would recognize them.
@CincyPD Criminal Investigations Section Press Release. Please help us identify this person. Call 513-352-3542 or @CincyPD_3523040 if you wish to remain anonymous. pic.twitter.com/oidcpY78tH
— Cincinnati Police Department (@CincyPD) October 25, 2019
Police said she had a tattoo on her right wrist that read "Queen" with a crown, and another tattoo - a geometric pattern - on her left hand.
She was wearing a red jacket, black stretch pants, sandals and an Erimish bracelet with a charm on it with the brand's name. She was also wearing hoop earrings and a nose ring.
'For something to happen right behind us is very scary'
Whitney Jackson was just glad her 6-year-old son didn’t find the body.
His football team, the Cincinnati Cardinals, normally practices three times a week in the fields near Woodward High School — close to the spot police discovered the body. Taquesha Ward, who lives nearby and also has a son on the Cardinals, said her children had been playing on the field just hours before police believe the woman was killed there.
“There’s a lot of babies out here,” Ward said. “We start at four years old, so for something to happen right behind us is very scary.”
Jackson said she had been apprehensive about the poorly lit Woodward fields even before the body was found. She felt safer when the team relocated to a nearby park.
“I’d rather stick to the other field,” she said. “There’s a lot of drug activity behind the (Woodward) football field and around it.”
Both women urged anyone with information to come forward. Police hope people will call Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
"Everybody deserves the truth and to be identified and have a proper memorial,” Ward said.
