Updated March 14, 5:05 p.m.
An alumna died Friday night at a Lululemon Athletica store in Bethesda, Md., after being sexually assaulted and beaten.
Jayna T. Murray – who listed on her LinkedIn page that she worked on a bachelor’s degree in International Business and Marketing from the School of Business from 2001 to 2003 – was found dead in the back of the store at 8 a.m. Saturday morning. The University confirmed Monday that Murray graduated from GW in 2003.
Montgomery County Police Chief Tom Manger told reporters at a news conference Monday afternoon that Murray was beaten to death, and a reward is being offered for information that helps solve the case.
A female employee found the store’s doors unlocked Saturday and called the police when she heard a noise coming from the back of the store. Police found Murray, 30, dead, and another female employee, 27, bound, sexually assaulted and injured.
An investigation into the incident determined that the two victims closed Lululemon Athletica around 9 p.m. Friday night and set the alarm at 9:45 p.m. One of the victims later phoned the other after she realized she left something inside the store and couldn’t unlock the door herself. Both victims returned to the store that night just after 10 p.m.
“It is believed that shortly thereafter two men, dressed all in black with faces and hands covered, entered the store. A robbery of commercial proceeds occurred, one victim was murdered, and the other victim was sexually assaulted,” according to a news release from the Montgomery County Police Department.
Capt. Paul Starks, a Montgomery County Police spokesman, said Sunday that the assault victim was hospitalized.
“She’s improving and expected to be released tomorrow,” he said.
Police describe one suspect as a 6-foot-tall man, and the other a 5-foot-3-inch tall man, but no further details on the suspects are known because the two men covered their faces and hands.
Starks said he’s not sure of exactly what was taken from the store or how much, but the entire store was being treated as a crime scene.
Tracey Reeves, a spokeswoman for Johns Hopkins University, confirmed that Murray was a part-time graduate student. Murray was working on a joint masters degree in communication and business administration.
Lululemon Athletica spokeswoman Alecia Pulman announced Monday that the company’s corporate office is offering a $125,000 award for information that leads to the arrest or indictment of the individuals, according to a news release from the police department. Another $10,000 in reward money is being offered by Federal Realty in Bethesda, as well as $1,000 from Crime Solvers.
Details on offering tips to help solve the case are available here.
