Vigil to be held Saturday for Fayetteville woman presumed dead in South Carolina

The family of a Fayetteville woman who is missing and presumed murdered in South Carolina is holding a prayer vigil here on Saturday.

Pine Forest High School graduate Jamilla Shanaé Smith, a 30-year-old mother of two, has been missing from her home in Jackson, South Carolina, since Dec. 2, according to the Aiken County Sheriff's Office.

Her ex-boyfriend, Daniel Gabriel Harmon, 34, of Beech Island, South Carolina, is charged with murder, kidnapping and domestic violence in her presumed death, the Sheriff's Office said. Those close to Smith said she and Harmon shared a child.

Kimberly Kite, founder of the South Carolina-based nonprofit Broken Link Foundation, said Wednesday the group has conducted searches and held vigils in the hopes of generating leads to find Smith's body. WPDE reported on Dec. 26 that a search warrant affidavit revealed authorities found "a large amount of blood" in a car rented by Harmon.

The couple had a volatile relationship with prior domestic violence allegations, Kite said.

She said that in a 911 call around 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 2 — the last time anyone heard from Smith — Smith told a dispatcher that her ex-boyfriend was chasing her and had hit her with a vehicle.

“She was pleading for her life,” Kite said.

According to WPDE reporting, one deputy responded to the scene, found nothing and left.

The following day, Smith's mother requested a welfare check when Smith didn't pick up one of her children from school. Her mother subsequently filed a missing person's report.

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The missing woman's stepmother, Malika Smith of Fayetteville, said Wednesday that her stepdaughter was caring, free-spirited and loved to sing to her children.

“She was a beautiful young lady,” Malika Smith said. “You always wanted to be around her.”

Jamilla Smith and her five siblings were raised in a military family here, according to her stepmother. The young woman moved away from Fayetteville in 2017.

The family has decided to hold a vigil here because this is where she grew up.

"We want (the community) to honor her light," Malika Smith said.

“Let people see that Jamilla is a person and not just another statistic,” Kite said.

The vigil is from 6-6:30 p.m. Saturday at First Impressions Academy private school off Raeford Road, 6965 Nexus Court.

Public safety reporter Joseph Pierre can be reached at jpierre@gannett.com.