Husband, roommates charged in death of Upstate woman missing since August
Anderson County Coroner Greg Shore said a who woman who has been missing since August was found dead in Pickens County.
The Town of Pendleton Police Department said 20-year-old Jessica Barnes was last seen on August 1.
He sent the following news release on Wednesday afternoon:
“Greg Shore, Coroner advised that his office is now involved in the investigation of a woman who has been missing since August and her body was discovered in Pickens County, SC.
“Shore advised that initially the investigation was handled by the Pickens County Coroner’s Office where the body was discovered. Late last night the investigation took a turn and revealed that the victim was apparently killed in Pendleton, SC. Investigators with the Anderson County Office of the Coroner have now been assigned to the case.”
According to the Pendleton Police Department, multiple agencies were called to the wooded area of Twin Lake in Pickens County where remains were found and identified as a human on Thursday, Sept. 19.
On Oct. 1, officials said the remains were identified as Jessica Barnes. Her cause of death was determined to be asphyxiation by strangulation and the manner of death has been ruled homicide.
An arrest warrant said Jessica’s husband, Brandon Barnes, used his arms to strangle her to death. It also mentioned that two roommates, Kendall Mims and Victoria Tippett, both helped Brandon get rid of Jessica’s body.
Brandon Barnes was charged with murder while the two roommates, Mims and Tippett, were both charged with accessory after the fact, obstruction of justice and misprision of a felony, according to the department.
