By Joe Johnson
The victim who was found murdered in an eastside Athens apartment this week has been identified as Esnati Thalani Gurura, a 48-year-old Zimbabwean woman.
She was found dead from a gunshot wound on Tuesday afternoon, but authorities were unable to immediately publicly release her name because of difficulty in locating her family members to make the formal death notification.
County Coroner Sonny Wilson on Friday said he was able to get assistance in the notification process from the woman’s relatives in Canada, who got word of Gurura’s death to her mother in Zimbabwe and brother in South Africa.
Arrested on Tuesday in connection with Gurura’s death is her boyfriend, 27-year-old Kendall Elon Boone of Royale Road, where police discovered her body after receiving a tip.
He is charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
Gurura had been killed instantly when she was shot in the face, in an apparent act of domestic violence.
Anyone who is in an abusive relationship can seek advice and support services by calling Project Safe's 24-hour hotline at (706) 543-3331, or by visiting http://www.project-safe.org