Another development has been made in the case of missing 19-year-old Aniah Blanchard, who is the stepdaughter of UFC fighter Walt Harris.
Ibraheem Yazeed, the suspect accused of kidnapping Blanchard last month in Auburn, Alabama, appeared in court on Wednesday for a preliminary hearing, according to MMA Fighting. The judge ordered Yazeed to submit to DNA testing after evidence emerged showing that a man had been in Blanchard’s car. The vehicle, which was recovered by police, also had blood in it, and the forensic team working on the case said that the evidence was “indicative of someone suffering a life-threatening injury.”
Yazeed, who was out on bond for charges of attempted murder, robbery, and kidnapping independently of the Blanchard case, was denied bond after the hearing, and his bond for his previous charges was also revoked.
MMA Fighting reports that a gag order is currently keeping the Harris family from speaking about the hearing, though a hearing on December 4 will deal with the requests to have that gag order lifted.
Blanchard was first reported missing on October 24. After Harris put out a plea for help, multiple MMA celebrities, including Dana White and Jon Jones, contributed to her reward fund, which is now sitting at $105,000. Blanchard is still missing, and anyone with information about the case is advised to call any of the following numbers:
Auburn Police Division Detective Section at 334-501-3140
Anonymous tip line at 334-246-1391
24 hour non-emergency number at 334-501-3100
