Death of Oluwatoyin Salau

Oluwatoyin Ruth "Toyin" Salau (August 27, 2000 – June 2020) was an American woman who disappeared on Saturday, June 6, 2020, shortly after tweeting about being sexually assaulted. Salau was found dead in Tallahassee, Florida, on Saturday, June 13, 2020,[2][3][4] and her death was confirmed on Monday, June 15, 2020.[4] As of July 2020, her death was being investigated as a homicide.[5]

Oluwatoyin Salau
Salau in 2020
Born
Oluwatoyin Ruth Salau[1]

(2000-08-27)August 27, 2000[1]
Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.
DiedJune 2020(2020-06-00) (aged 19)
Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.
Resting placeOakland Cemetery
EducationLincoln High School

Salau was an active participant in the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests in Tallahassee, Florida, described as an "emerging leader"[6] and "prominent voice"[7] in the movement. She had advocated on behalf of Tony McDade in particular.[6]

Early life

Salau was born on August 27, 2000 in Tallahassee, Florida.[8] She was a Nigerian-American,[9][10] with Yoruba being her native tongue.[11] A devout Christian, she was the youngest member of her church choir whilst growing up.[8]

Salau attended Buck Lake Elementary School and Swift Creek Middle School in Tallahassee,[8] and graduated from Lincoln High School in 2018.[12] Following graduation, she studied cosmetology at Lively Technical College, simultaneously starting her business in hairdressing and modeling.[8] In 2019, Salau enrolled at Tallahassee Community College while still at Lively, intending to study law at Florida A&M University thereafter.[8]

Disappearance and death
Oluwatoyin Twitter
@virgingrltoyin

Anyways I was molested in Tallahassee, Florida by a black man this morning at 5:30 on Richview and Park Ave. The man offered to give me a ride to find someplace to sleep and recollect my belongings from a church I refuged to a couple days back to escape unjust living conditions.

June 6, 2020[13]

Shortly before her disappearance, on June 6, 2020, she tweeted that she was sexually assaulted by a black man after he offered to give her a ride back to a church where she sought "refuge" because of "unjust living conditions".[14] She was last seen alive on June 10, 2020.[15]

After a search by community residents, the Tallahassee Community Action Committee, and Tallahassee Police Department,[16][17][18][19][20] her body was found on June 14, 2020[3][21] around 9:15 pm local time near Monday Road in southeastern Tallahassee.[22] Salau's body was discovered with that of Victoria Sims, a 75-year-old who had been active in local politics.[22][23]

Salau was buried at Oakland Cemetery in Tallahassee.[11]

Suspect

The suspect in Salau's death, Aaron Glee Jr., was arrested in Orlando, Florida during the early hours of June 14 and charged with murder and kidnapping.[20] Glee later confessed to the murder and rape of Salau.[24]

The bodies of Salau and Sims were found near his rental home in Tallahassee the night before. He had been arrested previously, less than a month prior, for aggravated battery after a police officer saw him kicking a woman in the stomach when she refused his sexual advances.[25]

Reaction

''RIP Toyin'' and ''Toyin'' trended on Twitter alongside the hashtag #JusticeForToyin after the news went out that Salau's body had been found.[2][21][26] Abike Dabiri, chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission called on the U.S. Government to ensure a thorough investigation of Salau's murder.[9]

References
  1. "Obituary for Oluwatoyin Ruth Salau at Tillman Funeral Home Tallahassee". Tillman Funeral Home. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  2. McBride, Jessica (June 13, 2020). "Oluwatoyin Salau: Tallahassee, Florida Black Lives Matter Protester Was Missing". Heavy.com. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  3. "Black Lives Matter activist Oluwatoyin Salau, 19, reportedly found dead after tweet". Al Arabiya English. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  4. Hassanein, Nada (June 15, 2020). "Florida protester Oluwatoyin Salau, 19, found dead in Tallahassee after going missing". USA TODAY. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  5. Baird, Addy (June 15, 2020). "Black Lives Matter Protester Oluwatoyin Salau Was Found Dead After Tweeting About Being Sexually Assaulted". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  6. Stieb, Matt (June 16, 2020). "Everything We Know About the Death of Black Lives Matter Activist Oluwatoyin Salau". New York Magazine Intelligencer. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  7. Nieto del Rio, Giulia McDonnell (June 15, 2020). "Oluwatoyin Salau, Missing Black Lives Matter Activist, Is Found Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  8. "Obituary for Oluwatoyin Ruth Salau". Legacy.com. Tallahassee Democrat. June 24, 2020. Archived from the original on July 9, 2020. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  9. "Nigeria Urges US To Probe Murder Of Nigerian-American Activist Toyin Salau". Sahara Reporters. June 16, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  10. Semeniworima, Daniel (June 16, 2020). "Toyin post complain of sexual molestation for Twitter, miss days later". BBC News (in Nigerian Pidgin). Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  11. Hassanein, Nada (June 28, 2020). "At her funeral, loved ones gather to remember 'bright, resilient' Oluwatoyin Salau". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  12. Wheeler, Emma (June 16, 2020). "Friends remember Black Lives Matter activist Toyin Salau". WCTV. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  13. Oluwatoyin [@virgingrltoyin] (June 6, 2020). "Anyways I was molested in Tallahassee, Florida by a black man this morning at 5:30 on Richview and Park Ave. The man offered to give me a ride to find someplace to sleep and recollect my belongings from a church I refuged to a couple days back to escape unjust living conditions" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  14. Hassanein, Nada. "Black Lives Matter protestor in Florida still missing after tweeting about sexual assault". USA TODAY. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  15. Hassanein, Nada (June 15, 2020). "Florida protester Oluwatoyin Salau killed in Tallahassee after going missing". The Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  16. "Black Lives Matter protester in Florida missing after tweeting about sexual assault". Washington Examiner. June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  17. Hassanein, Nada. "Tallahassee police, demonstrators still searching for missing Black Lives Matter protester". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  18. "TPD searching for missing 19-year-old activist last seen Saturday". WTXL. June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  19. Kaplan, Katie. "Tallahassee residents gather to look for missing activist". www.wctv.tv. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  20. Deliso, Meredith (June 16, 2020). "Suspect charged with murder, kidnapping in Oluwatoyin Salau case". ABC News. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
  21. "Oluwatoyin Salau: #JusticeForToyin trends after sexually assaulted 19-year-old BLM protester found dead". meaww.com. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  22. Jefferson, J'na (June 15, 2020). "Death of Oluwatoyin Salau: What We Know So Far". The Root. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  23. Amber Roberson and Grace Pateras (June 15, 2020). "Protester Oluwatoyin Salau, AARP volunteer Vicki Sims found dead: What we know so far". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved June 15, 2020. Tallahassee Police identified the suspect in the case as Aaron Glee Jr., 49. He is in police custody.
  24. Burlew, Jeff (July 5, 2020). "Aaron Glee has been charged with murders of Oluwatoyin Salau and Vicki Sims in Florida. He 'would have killed again,' experts say". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
  25. Roberson, Amber (June 16, 2020). "Man arrested in deaths of activist Oluwatoyin Salau and volunteer Vicki Sims in Florida: What we know". USA Today.
  26. "Tallahassee Model and Black Lives Matter Activist Oluwatoyin "Toyin" Salau Found Slain After Going Missing". Glitter Magazine. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
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