Body of Jessica Barnes found weeks after Pendleton, South Carolina woman went missing with the 20 year old woman’s husband, Brandon Barnes, confessing to her strangulation murder and the couple’s two roommates Victoria Tippett and Kendall Mims now also facing charges.
The body of a South Carolina woman who went missing in August has been found with authorities arresting her husband and two roommates in her alleged strangulation murder.
Jessica R. Barnes, 20, of Pendleton, went missing in early August but it wasn’t until September that Barnes was reported as having disappeared.
It wasn’t until September 10 that she was reported missing by her mom, Cecilia Varvara after having last seen her daughter alive on August 1 at her Pendleton marital home.
Jessica Barnes body disposed of in woods in nearby county
Her remains were found on September 20 in Pickens County, according to the Anderson County Coroner, now involved in the case, but weren’t positively identified until Tuesday.
That’s when, the coroner said, the investigation ‘took a turn’ and it was revealed that Jessica was killed in Pendleton – not in Pickens County, WSPA reported.
An autopsy revealed that Jessica died of asphyxiation by strangulation and her death has now been ruled a homicide.
At the time of her disappearance, Jessica was married to Brandon Richard Barnes, 21, and the couple was living with roommates Victoria Lee Tippett and Kendall Faith Mims, both 20, in a shared home.
According to the Pendleton Police Department, Brandon Barnes, admitted to police he had killed his wife along with the roommates confessing to their involvement, FitsNews reported.
All three individuals have since been arrested by Pendleton police and are jailed in Anderson County.
Brandon has been charged with murder according to a press release. Both Victoria and Kendall were charged with accessory after the fact, obstruction of justice, and neglect in reporting a felony.
Jessica Brandon was never id as person of interest publicly
Brandon is accused of having killed Jessica, with the couple’s roommates accused of having helped dispose of her body.
Jessica’s remains were reportedly discovered in a wooded area near the Twin Lakes boat ramp in nearby Pickens County.
The husband’s arrest comes despite the spouse never publicly being named a person of interest during Jessica’s disappearance.
The home the couple shared was searched by officials shortly after Jessica was officially reported missing, on September 20.
At the time authorities recovered several items, including a phone, that were sent to a crime lab for processing.
At the time, Pendleton Police Chief Robert Crosby maintained that Brandon was not a person of interest in the case. However, Crosby did confirm that the young couple were having marital issues.
‘There was some issues with her and her husband,’ Crosby told WYFF.
Victim of domestic violence
‘They were having the typical marital disputes, argumentative, and then, she just left.’
But Crosby said neither Brandon nor the roommates knew where Jessica went when she left the home.
At the time of Jessica’s disappearance, Brandon and Tippet were seen putting up missing person flyers in Pendleton Square, reportedly one of Jessica’s favorite spots.
When asked what his message to his wife was, Brandon at the time told Blunt Force Media, ‘I would tell her how much I love her and I wish I never went to work everyday and ignored her.
‘I ignored her voice, told her she was fine when I knew she wasn’t.’
Brandon also addressed rumors of his alleged involvement in Jessica’s disappearance.
Wrote one commentator on social two weeks ago, ‘Why is that man not in custody??? Lying to the police MULTIPLE times about the whereabouts of a missing person who he claims to be the last one to see alive!?! He should be in custody being severely questioned. Why do y’all continue to give men the benefit of the doubt when time and time again we see this same thing happen to women.’
Retorted Brandon, ‘It’s just nasty—all the comments and the ‘M’ word and all the other stuff. I could physically never do something like that.’
Varvara reported Jessica missing after she received a strange text message from her daughter.
But Varvara had doubts that it was written by Jessica and sounded the alarm.
Read a statement in part issued by Varvara on Wednesay, ‘We hope this serves as a message to domestic violence victims everywhere: Please reach out for help.
‘Jessica was strong, but piece by piece, he strength was stripped away.’
