Jamilla Smith’s family reported her missing on Dec. 2, 2023. Investigators found her remains on May 10, 2024. Her ex-boyfriend is facing murder charges. (Images: Aiken County Sheriff’s Office)
More than six months after her family reported her missing, authorities found a woman’s remains in a wooded area in rural South Carolina.
The Aiken County Sheriff’s Office alleges Daniel Harmon murdered his ex-girlfriend, 30-year-old Jamilla Shanae Smith in December. Cops found her body on May 10 in a wooded area near the 2100 block of Silver Bluff Road in Aiken. An autopsy said Smith died from gunshots wounds to the head, the Aiken County Coroner Darryl Ables said. As Law&Crime previously reported, Harmon faces charges of murder, kidnapping and domestic violence. Smith’s family last saw her on Dec. 2.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by local ABC affiliate WJBF, detectives believe Harmon killed Smith around 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 2 outside her home on Old Jackson Highway in Jackson, South Carolina. Smith called 911 to say her ex-boyfriend broke into her home and was chasing her down the road. Dispatchers heard a car engine revving and Smith screaming. She apparently dropped the phone and dispatchers heard a man on the other line telling Smith to get into car so he could take her to the emergency room.
Smith repeatedly refused and told the man that he ran her over and that she was in pain before the line went dead, the affidavit reportedly said. The man, believed to be Harmon, never took her to the hospital.
Investigators later allegedly found a shoe print on Smith’s door.
After deputies reported Smith missing to the media, they received a tip from someone saying they rented a 2023 Dodge Charge to Harmon. They tracked the car to a home and found it covered, with Harmon inside. Officials took him into custody on Dec. 5, the affidavit said. They arrested Harmon on domestic violence charges before adding the kidnapping and murder charges in the ensuing weeks.
Detectives found blood in the car’s trunk and sent a sample to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. On Saturday, detectives received the results, but the information was redacted from the affidavit, WJBF reported.
The Aiken Standard reports Harmon has a slew of previous criminal charges including domestic violence, assault and battery.
Two other men, Clyde James Hendley II and Alexander Hampton Jr., both 35, are also behind bars, accused of helping Harmon dispose of Smith’s body, according to WJBF. They are charged with accessory after the fact.
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