Monday, August 1, 2022

The Murder of Jessica McCormack

 

Jessica McCormack disappeared under suspicious circumstances in July 2019. Before vanishing, the 25-year-old was planning on making some major changes in her life. Jessica wanted to move with her three young daughters from Noel, Missouri to St. Louis. Before she had the chance, she went missing. Jessica's body was found about two weeks later near Missouri Highway 59 between Lanagan and Noel. She had been murdered, and her body was stuffed into her own suitcase.

The last confirmed sighting of Jessica occurred on July 16th, 2019. Just two days earlier, Jessica and her three daughters spent time with Jessica's best friend, Megan Bailey, at Megan's residence. According to Megan, Jessica was going to be picked up on July 16th by Ibraham Akfeen - the father of her youngest child. Then, Jessica, Akfeen, and the children were all going to move to St. Louis. The one thing holding Jessica back was her relationship with a man named Mahamud Tooxoow Mahamed. 

Mahamed and Jessica were married - not legally, but through the Muslim faith. Their relationship was reportedly tumultuous and Jessica had told people that if something bad happened to her, Mahamed was likely responsible. Due to this, Jessica's friend Megan grew worried when Jessica stopped answering her calls and texts on July 15th. Megan was even more alarmed when she was contacted by Akfeen, who told her that he had received a concerning message from Jessica's phone. Megan and police officers both went to Jessica's home on July 16th. Megan stated that nobody answered the door, but she could tell that there were people inside the apartment. Other reports state that officers were, in fact, able to confirm that Jessica was inside the home - but this was the last known sighting of her alive.

Thirteen days later, Jessica's body was found. An exact cause of death has never been revealed, but it is clear that she was a victim of homicide. After investigators identified the body as that of Jessica McCormack, they wanted to confirm that her children were safe. The only problem was, police could not find the children. At that point, an Amber Alert was issued. The public was asked to be on the lookout for both Mahamed and the kids.

On August 8th, 2019, the children were found safe in Des Moines, Iowa - at the home of one of Mahamed's former co-workers. The former co-worker told police that Mahamed and the children had arrived at her house on August 5th. On the morning of August 8th, the woman found a note from Mahamed stating that he could not care for the children. Police then issued a warrant for Mahamed's arrest. He was being charged with kidnapping Jessica's oldest daughter - as the girl's father had not given consent for her to be taken across state lines. 

Police could not immediately take Mahamed into custody because he went on the run. It took about two years, but Mahamed was finally located in Guatemala during the summer of 2021. He was extradited back to the United States, where he was formally charged with kidnapping. Those charges are currently pending.

Mahamud Mahamed (source:ksn)

There have still not been any arrests for the murder of Jessica McCormack. Many believe that Mahamed is responsible for her death, but he still has not faced any charges relating to Jessica's case. As of today, her case is labeled as unsolved. If you have any information that could help lead to the arrest of Jessica's killer(s), please contact Noel authorities at (417) 475-6237.

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