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Murder charge follows Cleveland stabbing
20-year-old from Cleveland arrested after Sautee man dies
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A 20-year-old Cleveland man has been charged with murder in the fatal stabbing of a 31-year-old Sautee man.

Cleveland Police arrested Luke Haroldson McClure Sunday afternoon following the death of Jonathan Wendt on Saturday night.

According to a statement released by Cleveland Police Chief John Foster, officers were called to a home at 105 Bryant St. at about 9:40 p.m. Saturday. Wendt was found lying on the front porch, not breathing and unresponsive. Emergency personnel attempted to revive Wendt, but he was pronounced dead at Northeast Georgia Medical Center.

White County Coroner Ricky Barrett said Wendt appears to have died from stab wounds, but the state crime lab was performing an autopsy Monday.

Barrett said Wendt lived in Sautee and was visiting the residence in Cleveland. He did not know if McClure lived at the Bryant Street address.

Police have not commented on any motive for the incident.

A memorial service for Wendt is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday at Alexander’s Gateway Chapel in Cleveland. A spokeswoman for the funeral home said there will be no visitation and no viewing.

Saturday’s slaying was Cleveland’s first homicide in recent memory. It happened almost exactly two months after a similar killing in Helen.

On Jan. 10, Darrin Keith Ramey, 24, was stabbed to death at Southside Bar & Grill in Helen. Samuel Abernathy, 39, and John Paul Geren, 52, were later charged with his murder. All three men lived in White County.

Where a new subdivision is being developed off Lake Lanier
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Construction crews prepare new single-family homes and townhomes currently going up Wednesday, April 2, 2025, off Chestatee Rd. near Bolding Mill in Hall County at the new Falcon Landing subdivision. - photo by Scott Rogers
A new housing development is springing up off the shores of Lake Lanier.
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