Gainesville man booked in Forsyth County Jail in Dawsonville killing case

A Gainesville man charged with malice murder in the death of a Dawsonville woman is now booked in the Forsyth County Jail, a move that puts the case back into the local criminal-justice system and closer to prosecution in Forsyth County. Loron Spaulding, 35, was arrested in New Jersey by U.S. Marshals and returned to Georgia after months in custody there.

The case centers on Diaja Benson, 30, of Dawsonville, whose body was found near Lanier 400 Parkway in Cumming on March 13 at about 11 a.m. Authorities said Benson had been reported missing in Dawson County on Feb. 20. Her death drew attention because the body was discovered near downtown Cumming, in an area that many residents pass every day along one of the city’s busiest corridors.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation charged Spaulding with malice murder on April 2. He had been held at the Hudson County Correctional Center in Jersey City, New Jersey, since April before being booked into the Forsyth County Jail on June 7. That transfer matters because it brings the defendant physically into the county where the next phase of the case will unfold, and it moves the matter from arrest and extradition toward court proceedings tied to the Bell-Forsyth Judicial Circuit.

Investigators have not publicly disclosed how Benson was killed or whether Spaulding knew her. The GBI has said the case remains active and ongoing, and sources said additional charges may be possible as the investigation continues. The case has involved the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Cumming Police Department, Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, Dawson County Sheriff’s Office and Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

Once the investigation is complete, the GBI says the case will be turned over to the Bell-Forsyth Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for prosecution. That handoff will set up the next formal steps in a homicide case of this scale, including the prosecutor’s review of the murder charge and any decisions about how the case moves through Forsyth County Superior Court.

A nearby hospital worker described the killing as “terrible” and “messed up,” and said the area is normally considered safe. The GBI is still asking anyone with information to contact its Regional Investigative Office in Cleveland or submit an anonymous tip through its tip line or mobile app.