Jessica Barnes adored children and was preparing to be a teacher at a technical school near her home in Pendleton, SC.
However, when the 20-year-old began dating Brandon Barnes, 21, her life turned upside down.
After marrying him and moving in with him and two roommates, she lost her job at a diner, dropped out of college, and drifted away from her huge, close-knit Romanian family. After discovering her husband having sex with a roommate, she went missing, according to her relatives.
Brendan Barnes was charged with Jessica’s murder on October 2, and roommates Kendall Mims and Victoria Tippett, all 20, are accused of helping him. According to authorities, Brendan strangled his wife on August 2, and Mims and Tippett assisted him in concealing her death and moving her body to a wooded area miles away, where it was discovered on September 20.
In an interview with HuffPost, Troy Styles of Blunt Force Media, who is acting as Jessica’s family’s spokesperson, disclosed fresh facts about her connection with Brandon and the warning signs her mother saw as a fellow domestic violence survivor.
“There’s a thing that Jessica wrote in her Bible, and it listed off, like, I don’t know, 20 things that she was willing to give to Brandon, and at the end, it listed one thing that she wanted back, and it was just to be loved,” Styles told me. Her family referred to her as a “bubbly,” creative young person.
Jessica and Brandon met after matching on Tinder, according to Styles, and while presenting himself in a variety of ways on dating platforms, he had a preference for Christian women. Styles stated that Brandon would discuss God, giving them hope of protection.
However, Jessica’s family members claimed he was abusive and left her bruised, according to Styles. Her mother protested to their relationship, but she eventually moved in with him.
Jessica thought Mims was Brandon’s sister at first, but she was someone Brandon had previously had a sexual encounter with, according to Styles.
According to Anderson County Probate court records, Brandon married Mims in July 2023, just months before marrying Jessica in January of the following year. Crosby informed independent news outlet FITS News that Brandon and Mims never divorced, but the agency does not intend to pursue bigamy charges owing to the gravity of the other, more serious allegations.
Pendleton Police Chief Robert Crosby acknowledged that Barnes had a kid with Mims.
Jessica Barnes discovered the truth about her husband’s involvement with Mims after Mims gave birth to his child, according to Styles. Together with Tippett, the three lived in a 1,100-square-foot pool house on Brandon Barnes’ grandfather’s land.
Styles claimed Jessica’s family was desperate to maintain their contact with her, but they usually interacted via text. Jessica would seek her mother’s encouragement and prayer because she desired to be a loving wife to Brandon.
Jessica experienced a stillbirth in March 2024. But she stayed in the relationship because, as a Christian, she wanted to establish a family around Brandon and save him and their roommates, Styles explained. She would stay at home to care for Mims’ child while her husband and roommates worked.
However, on July 31, Styles stated she discovered her husband having sex with Tippett and chose to end the relationship.
Brandon Barnes dropped her off at her mother’s house, but he was “vile” to his wife’s family, who phoned police for help, Styles claimed. When officers arrived, Jessica was suffering a “panic episode,” according to Styles, and first responders transported her to the hospital.
Barnes “caught up with her” the next day and, after picking up some goods from her mother’s place, returned her to the pool house, according to Styles.
According to the arrest warrants acquired by HuffPost, Brendan Barnes strangled Jessica Barnes to death on August 2. Mims and Tippett are accused of helping cover up the homicide, and Styles claims her family got text messages from her phone that they did not believe were written by her. On September 10, her mother reported her missing when her phone was deactivated.
As her family members distributed missing posters and held a prayer vigil, Styles interviewed Brandon, who had not yet been designated a suspect. In the video, Brandon expresses his belief that Jessica will return home.
When asked what message he would like to offer her, Brandon Barnes replied, “I would tell her how much I love her and how I wish I hadn’t gone to work every day and ignored her.”
According to the arrest warrants, Brandon Barnes, Mims, and Tippett confessed after being read their Miranda rights.
A representative for the South Carolina Commission of Indigent Defense told HuffPost that the office has initiated cases for Brendan Barnes and Tippett, but they have yet to be appointed counsel. It’s unknown whether Mims has a counsel defending her.
They were ordered jailed without bond while they awaited their future court appearances. Meanwhile, Jessica’s mother has started a campaign to allow her to take time off from her job as an Uber driver to appear in court and seek justice for her daughter.
“Jessica was a bright, compassionate young woman with a beautiful spirit and endless potential,” the donation page adds. “She had dreams, aspirations, and a profound love for her family and friends.”
