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Long-cold case shattered as DNA links suspect to savage attack, killing of young woman, investigators say

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A Georgia man has been arrested in connection with the decades-old cold case of the rape and murder of a young woman over 40 years ago, authorities announced.

Freddie Lee Granger Jr., 68, is charged with one count of rape, malice murder, aggravated assault and two counts of felony murder stemming from the death of Sandra Kaye Davis, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI).

Davis was just 22 years old when authorities with the Waycross Police Department discovered her body next to a home on Kollock Street in Waycross on Sept. 1, 1984, officials said.

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Sandra Kaye Davis was just 22 years old when authorities with the Waycross Police Department discovered her body next to a home on Kollock Street in Waycross, Georgia on Sept. 1, 1984, officials said. (GBI)

Authorities ultimately determined Davis had been strangled to death.

Following the discovery, local officials requested that GBI assist with investigating the case.

The case ultimately ran cold for several decades as authorities continued to investigate.

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Freddie Lee Granger Jr., 68, was booked into the Ware County Jail on charges of one count of rape, malice murder, aggravated assault and two counts of felony murder stemming from the death of Sandra Kaye Davis, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI). (Google Maps)

Nearly 42 years later, DNA technology linked Granger to Davis’ alleged killing, officials said.

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Investigators with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation linked Freddie Lee Granger Jr. to Sandra Kaye Davis’ murder using DNA technology, according to officials. (Google Maps)

Granger was subsequently located and taken into custody on March 31, according to GBI.

He was later booked into the Ware County Jail, authorities said.

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The Waycross Police Department, Ware County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia Department of Community Supervision, and GBI’s Cold Case Unit assisted the GBI Regional Investigative Office in both the investigation and arrest of Granger.

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The investigation remains ongoing, with authorities asking anyone with information to contact the GBI Regional Investigative Office at 912-389-401 or submit a tip online.

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Julia Bonavita is a U.S. Writer for Fox News Digital and a Fox Flight Team drone pilot. You can follow her at @juliabonavita13 on all platforms and send story tips to julia.bonavita@fox.com.

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