Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023
Covering Lee County, Alabama
An award-winning publication created 'For local people, by local people.' Vol. 15, No. 16
Opelika, Alabama
Her Name is Amore PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY OPELIKA POLICE DEPARTMENT
BY HANNAH LESTER AND KENDYL HOLLINGSWORTH EDITOR@ OPELIKAOBSERVER.COM
OPELIKA — Eleven years ago, the Opelika Police Department discovered the skeletal remains of a little girl — an unknown little girl. But now, just a few days shy of the anniversary of her body's discovery, she has been identified. Opelika Baby Jane Doe's name is Amore Joveah Wiggins. Amore was found on Jan. 28, 2012, at the Brookhaven Trailer Park at 1775 Hurst St. in Opelika. Her skull rested in the yard while the rest of her bones were back toward the woods. Officers found a pink shirt and a bit of her hair
See AMORE, page A3
Eli The Barber Makes Mark On Opelika
Holly Surrency, owner of Envy Salon in Opelika, which was recognized as the top beauty salon in Alabama this month by Top Rated Local.
ELIJAH MICHEL Michel is proud of. “I like anything that is a big transformation,” Michel said of his favorite
types of cuts to do. “When they haven’t had a haircut in months, and we do something drastically
The Envy of Opelika PHOTO BY WIL CREWS / THE OBSERVER
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED TO THE OBSERVER
BY DANIEL LOCKE FOR THE OBSERVER
OPELIKA — For many people, their haircut is the foundation of their look. It is the beginning and end of their style. No one knows this better than Elijah Michel, better known as “Eli the Barber.” Michel has a lot of experience cutting hair dating back to his high school days. “I’ve been cutting hair since I was 16 and I moved down here from Kansas City, started my suite, and have been pretty much cutting everybody since then” Michel said. Being in a field that has many ways of doing things, barbers and hair stylists are often viewed as artists. This is a label that
during the search, which were sent to the FBI Laboratory in Quantico, Virginia. But it has been a long, hard search to identify Amore since then. “The report [from Quantico] stated that the remains were of a black female likely between 4 and 7 years of age who became affectionately known to the community as Babe Jane Doe,” said a news release from the Opelika Police Department on Jan. 19, 2023. The autopsy revealed Amore had suffered over 15 fractures from blunt force trauma to her body before her death. “In addition, the Medical Examiner suggested that Jane Doe may have been malnourished and
different.” Michel has cut the hair
OPELIKA — Envy Salon in downtown Opelika was recently
BY WIL CREWS SPORTSCREWS @OPELIKAOBSERVER.COM
See MICHEL, page A2
See ENVY, page A5
CONTENTS
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OPINION ................. A4 ENTERTAINMENT ...... A7 RELIGION .............. A12 OBITUARIES ........... A13 COMICS .................. A16
SPORTS ................... B1 POLITICS ................. B9 PUBLIC NOTICES ..... B10 CLASSIFIEDS .......... B14 PUZZLES ................ B15