Missouri Man Charged with Kidnapping Murder Victim’s Daughter

A 37-year old man from Noel, MO, has been charged in federal court with kidnapping the 4-year old daughter of a woman whose body was discovered in a suitcase last month.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says 37-year old Mahamud Tooxoow Mahamed, a Somali national, was charged in a criminal complaint filed late Tuesday (Aug 13), in the U.S. District Court in Springfield, MO.

Authorities say Mahamed is not in federal custody and is a fugitive from justice.

According to an affidavit filed in support of the federal criminal complaint, the body of Jessica McCormack, of Noel, was discovered on July 29 near MO-59 between Lanagan and Noel. The last time McCormack was seen alive, according to the affidavit, was when law enforcement officers responded to a call at her home on July 16, 2019.

Also present in the residence were Mahamed, who was identified as McCormack’s paramour, and McCormack’s three daughters, identified in court documents as Jane Doe 1 (four years old), Jane Doe 2 (two years old), and Jane Doe 3 (six months old). Jane Doe 2 is reportedly Mahamed’s daughter.

McCormack’s children could not be located after her body was discovered and identified. An Amber Alert was issued for McCormack’s three children, who were located at a residence in Des Moines, Iowa, and taken into state custody on August 8.

According to the affidavit, a woman who formerly worked with Mahamed at the Tyson plant in Noel, told law enforcement that Mahamed arrived at her Des Moines residence with the children on August 5.

She discovered he had left on Aug. 8. The affidavit says she found a note from Mahamed, informing her that he could not care for the children.

Investigators confirmed with the father of McCormack’s oldest child that Mahamed did not have his consent to take Jane Doe 1 outside the state of Missouri.

At this time, the biological father of Jane Doe 3 has not been positively identified.

Investigation is reportedly ongoing.