GAINESVILLE -- Gainesville Police and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are investigating a homicide Saturday at the Sun Suites Hotel on Jesse Jewell Parkway.

Gainesville Police Cpl. Kevin Holbrook said a 911 call was placed about 2 p.m. Saturday by an employee of Sun Suites.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation arrived on the scene shortly thereafter.

“We don’t know the manner of death at this time,” said Cpl. Joe Britte of the Gainesville Police Department on Saturday afternoon.

As of 6 p.m. Saturday, investigators were still gathering evidence at the crime scene.

Officials have not released any further details as to the victim’s identity, gender or manner of death.

It also was not confirmed whether the victim was a resident of the hotel.

“At this time, it [the victim] appears to be somebody that was in the hotel,” Britte said. “Whether it was a resident or not, we don’t know at this time.”

Gainesville residents Jasmine Summers, 16, and Wachovia Thompson, 23, were walking to the Sun Suites Hotel on Saturday afternoon to rent a room when they were stopped by police, who asked them for identification and soon blocked entry to the hotel with crime scene tape.

Summers, who stayed in the Sun Suites last October, was surprised to learn the police presence was due to a homicide.

“It was a real quiet hotel,” Summers said. “It [the tenants] was mainly older people. You’ll see kids sometimes, but not really.”

Summers said the The Sun Suites always has been a safe place to stay.

“Stuff like this doesn’t happen here,” Summers said. “It’s weird, because nothing happens over here.”