The mother of a missing South Carolina woman says her daughter had been having marital issues prior to her disappearance.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, the Town of Pendleton Police Department stated that 20-year-old Jessica Barnes was last seen on August 1 in the Pendleton area. She was wearing flip-flops, an orange t-shirt, dark jeans, and carrying a black backpack at the time.
Barnes’ mother, Cecilia Varvara, requested a wellness check after she was unable to reach her daughter, and Barnes’ husband, Brandon Barnes, stopped responding to messages.
According to WYFF4, Vavara said she received a strange text message in September, supposedly from Barnes, but Varvana said it didn’t sound like her daughter.
It’s unclear at this time what the message entailed.
Pendleton police Chief Robert Crosby confirmed that the couple had been going through issues prior to Barnes’ disappearance.
“There was some issues with her and her husband. They were having the typical marital disputes, argumentative, and then, she just left,” Crosby said.
Crosby added that Brandon Barnes is not currently considered a suspect but police are exploring all possibilities.
“We’re looking into everything. We’re looking into any possibilities via her social media or anything like that — if she got a ride, if she flagged someone down and got a ride,” he said. “We do know that she did not leave the country. … We’re just continuing to look for any clues to where she had gone on foot.
Pendleton police have searched Barnes’ residence and vehicles at that residence, as well as the Twin Lakes campground near Lake Hartwell, several miles from her home, where she and her husband went camping and had bonfires, according to Crosby.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) is assisting with the investigation into Barnes’ disappearance.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Chief Robert Crosby at 864-646-9409 or email at robertc@townofpendleton.org.
