AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office has made an arrest after a 28-year-old was beaten to death last month.

38-year-old Tamiko Bolton has been charged for murdering Elias Delk on June 15th. 

The Coroner’s Office says Delk died from multiple blunt force trauma following the murder at the Dollar General on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

His former coworkers say they still can’t believe what happened. 

“I didn’t believe it. I called his phone over and over and over again, because it was just horrible. I think a trauma like that is super abrasive–and for a good little while, you’re not in your own reality,” said his former boss Sarah Cro.

“To hear about how it was done, it was just a shock. Nobody deserves to be beaten to death–so it was rough,” his kitchen manager Mikeda Johnson said.

Investigators say Bolton and several other people beat Delk using their fists, feet, and a stick.

Delk suffered broken ribs, a punctured lung, and hematomas to his scalp and face, before dying from his injuries.

His mother, Jacinda Beverley, sharing the same shock. 

“I was actually supposed to volunteer at a Father’s Day conference here in Dallas, and as I was preparing to get ready, I got a knock on the door. A cop, police officer, told me that Elias Delk was no longer with me–that shattered my whole world,” Beverley said.

Now they are remembering the man who meant the world to them. 

He was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and Beverley says he was the happiest child growing up.

“He was always happy-go-lucky, he played a lot of sports, he played musical instruments like the flute and violin–I tried to keep him very busy, because he had a lot of energy,” said Beverley. “He was a handful, but just a great personality.”

Prior to coming to Augusta, he gained experience working in different jobs–a server in the hospitality industry, a maintenance job pulling carpets, and even took a job in management.

But along the way, his mother says he ran into trouble–he then found himself at a transition center in Augusta, in an effort to turn his life around.

The opportunity came along for him to work at Fifth and Finch in Augusta in 2022.

“Prior to coming to Fifth and Finch, he was working in a restaurant, so he had that background,” Beverley said. “So, when he went through the transition center, that’s where they placed him–and that’s where Sarah gave him the opportunity to work for her: and she’s been wonderful.”

Cro says he started as a dishwasher, and kitchen manager Mikeda Johnson saw his potential early on.

“After dishwashing he went to cooking, and he eventually moved to the front of the house and became one of the faces of the restaurant,” Cro said. “He was great at all of it.”

Friends and family saying they knew him best for his work ethic, and radiating positivity. 

“He was working multiple jobs to provide for his family, and he was on education route to be an HVAC technician, so he dialed back working at Finch. But the Masters of 2023–while practicing Ramadan strictly and fasting–he worked 70 hours that week,” said Cro.

“He would always be the type of person who was teachable,” Johnson said. “He always wanted to learn something new. We would have competitions about who could make the better desserts–so he was a great worker.”

“He had an infectious smile. If I ever said anything negative, he would just rebuke the statement. Like, Mom I can’t even think like that. He was determined to turn his life around,” said Beverley. “His life was just too short. He should still be here, living life, and enjoying life, and celebrating his life. My heart is crushed, and I’m still in somewhat disbelief that this happened.”

The Sheriff’s Office has informed NewsChannel 6 that a second suspect has now been arrested.

They and the Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested Creston Curry on Friday, July 19th.

They say Curry was also wanted for other outstanding warrants unrelated to the case.

Delk did not have life insurance, so a website has been created to support the family during this time.

If you would like to contribute in any way, you can find the website here.