AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The Richmond County Coroner’s Office has identified the deceased male found in a Dollar General parking lot in Augusta Saturday morning.

The Richmond County Coroner’s Office said 28-year-old Elias Jkhael Delk appeared to have died from multiple blunt-force trauma and an autopsy is scheduled.

It was one of two deaths being investigated within about 12 hours in Augusta. On Friday evening, a homeless man was found dead near Interstate 520 and Windsor Spring Road. The death is considered suspicious.

In the Dollar General incident, officials say the deputies responded to the 1700 block of Martin Luther King Jr around 4:45 a.m. to investigate a suspicious situation.

When deputies arrived, they found a deceased male with blunt-force trauma, according to deputies.

Richmond County Coroner Mark Bowen said the victim was pronounced dead at the scene at 5:45 a.m.

The investigation is ongoing, and Bowen and the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office are calling it a homicide.

Suspicious death

In the Windsor Spring incident, authorities say they responded to the Interstate 520 eastbound ramp at Windsor Spring Road to investigate a report of a deceased person.

According to Bowen, the man was pronounced dead at the scene around 5 p.m. Friday.

The death is considered suspicious, according to officials.

Crime across the region

The incidents come amid a more than two-year outbreak of violent crime that’s claimed more than 150 lives across the CSRA.

Communities large and small have been affected on both sides of the Savannah River, but as the largest city in the region, Augusta has been hit especially hard.

The deaths came a week after a shooting in downtown Augusta left three people wounded – including the gunmen, who was shot by deputies – and led the mayor to ask for extra law enforcement help from the state.

But both of these latest incidents happened far from downtown, which has been the focus of much attention in the past week.

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