Zoe Welsh’s death in a Clay Street home invasion has left a school community grieving while prosecutors pursue murder charges.
RALEIGH, N.C. — Zoe Welsh spent nearly two decades teaching science at Ravenscroft School before police say an intruder broke into her Raleigh home and attacked her during a 911 call.
The killing of the 57-year-old teacher has moved from a school community’s sudden grief to a murder case built on emergency audio, neighborhood tracking, physical evidence and statements attributed to the suspect. Ryan Vincent Camacho, 36, is charged with first-degree murder and first-degree burglary. A newly released warrant says he told detectives he killed Welsh and struck her with a rock.
Ravenscroft School described Welsh as a cornerstone of its Upper School Science Department. She had worked at the private K-12 school for years, teaching biology and shaping the daily life of a campus where faculty members often know students across grade levels and seasons. After her death, the school said it was providing grief counseling and support for students, faculty and staff. “The Ravenscroft community is devastated by the loss of our beloved colleague and friend Zoe Welsh,” the school said. The statement said her loss was deeply felt by those who had worked with her and learned in her classroom.
Police said the attack happened early Jan. 3 at Welsh’s home at 819 Clay Street, near Fred Fletcher Park. Welsh called 911 at 6:33 a.m. after hearing glass break and finding a man inside. She told dispatchers the man was in her kitchen and said she recognized him from seeing him at the park across the street, according to warrant details. The call then captured her being attacked. Officers arrived and found Welsh with life-threatening injuries. They rendered aid until paramedics took her to a local hospital, where she died from her injuries. Raleigh police soon announced Camacho had been arrested and charged.
The arrest followed a search through the neighborhood around Clay Street. A police dog tracked the suspect to an apartment about half a mile from Welsh’s home, according to the warrant. Officers found a broken window at the apartment and found Camacho inside with blood on his hands, investigators wrote. Police later learned he had previously lived there before being evicted. Other details released from the warrants say investigators seized clothing, including items believed to have blood on them, and recovered a rock they suspect was used in the assault. Police also briefly detained another man early in the investigation, but he was released.
The warrant released in April brought a new level of detail to the public record. During an interview with two Raleigh police detectives, Camacho allegedly asked whether the questioning was about “the lady’s head I bashed in with a rock” and referred to Welsh as “the lady I killed.” Investigators wrote that the comments showed he knew how Welsh died. Police have not stated a motive, and authorities have not said Welsh and Camacho had any personal relationship. The known connection comes from the 911 call, where Welsh said she had seen the man before at Fletcher Park. Investigators have said they believe Camacho may have been sleeping in or near the park before the killing, but they have not said for how long.
Raleigh Police Chief Rico Boyce framed the case as both a homicide investigation and a community loss. He called Welsh a mother, friend and mentor and said the department was heartbroken for her family. Boyce said the responding officers’ swift and diligent actions led to Camacho’s quick apprehension. For Ravenscroft, the loss was measured not through court filings but through the empty space left in its science department. The school’s statement described Welsh as a steady force in the classroom and a colleague whose influence reached across the community. Students and faculty returned to campus with counseling support in place.
Camacho’s background has become part of the case’s wider context. Court and jail records show arrests across Wake and Durham counties over about 20 years. His prior cases included breaking and entering, larceny, property damage, malicious conduct by a prisoner, shooting into occupied property and a prison escape. In 2025, he faced felony charges tied to break-ins in Durham County. Those charges were reduced in a plea agreement to one misdemeanor breaking and entering count, and he served time in the Durham County jail before being released in August. He was also in custody in Wake County for several months before a December 2025 competency issue led to dismissal of unrelated misdemeanor charges.
That December proceeding has drawn attention because prosecutors sought involuntary commitment and were denied. District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said the law required proof that Camacho was an imminent danger to himself or others. The judge did not find that standard had been met. Past court filings described Camacho as having a history of diagnosed mental health problems, including schizophrenia, hallucinations and paranoia. A later forensic evaluator wrote that she could not determine his capacity to proceed in other cases. Those records do not decide the murder charge, but they may shape how the court handles competency before any trial.
The prosecution now rests on a chain of events that begins in Welsh’s home and ends in court. The 911 call captured her report of an intruder and the start of the assault, according to police. The search found Camacho nearby, investigators said. The warrant attributes statements to him about the killing. Physical evidence, including clothing and the suspected weapon, was seized. A Wake County grand jury indicted Camacho on Feb. 10, giving prosecutors formal charges to pursue in Superior Court. He remains held without bond at the Wake County Detention Center while the case proceeds.
Welsh’s classroom role remains central to how many people in Raleigh understand the case. She was not only the victim named in a warrant but a teacher whose work reached students year after year. The school’s grief and the court’s process now move on separate tracks. One is personal and communal. The other is legal and slow. The next milestone listed in court records was Camacho’s April 30 appearance.
Author note: Last updated May 6, 2026.