GBI Arrests Two in Baxley Death Investigation

Baxley, GA (June 3, 2025) – The GBI has arrested and charged Dustin Sauls, age 41, of Blackshear, GA, and Cierra Chancey, age 36, of Blackshear, GA, with one count of Concealing Death of Another and one count of Possession of Cocaine in connection to the death of their child.

The GBI was originally requested on September 28, 2022, by the Baxley Police Department to investigate the death of Sauls and Chancey’s 6-month-old child. Preliminary information indicated the parents delayed reporting the death and were in possession of a substance later determined to be cocaine at the time.

On May 30, 2025, Sauls and Chancey were taken into custody without incident and booked into the Appling County Jail.

An autopsy was completed by the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office in Pooler, Georgia.

The GBI would like to thank the Baxley Police Department, the Appling County Sheriff’s Office, and the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance in this investigation.

This investigation is active and ongoing. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Baxley Police Department at (912) 367-8305 or the GBI Regional Investigative Office in Douglas at (912) 389-4103. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477), online at https://gbi.georgia.gov/submit-tips-online, or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app.

Once the investigation is complete, the case file will be given to the Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for prosecution.