HAYTI, MO – Authorities in Pemiscot County have arrested three men connected to the abduction, sexual assault, and killing of an 18-year-old woman, whose body was found in a rural area late last week.

Investigators said Kaniah Jennings, of Portageville, was last seen on November 3 in Hayti before disappearing under suspicious circumstances. According to court records, Jennings was picked up that evening by Kennan Peoples, 20, and Blake Patrick, 22, and was held against her will at a house shared by Kennan and Donald Peoples, 24.

The investigation revealed that Jennings’s ordeal began when she was allegedly restrained and sexually assaulted by at least two of the suspects, according to statements given by Patrick during police interviews. Documents indicate that socks were forced into Jennings’s mouth, and she was bound before a blanket was placed over her head. Patrick told authorities he and Kennan Peoples engaged in sexual acts with Jennings while she was restrained.

Kennan Peoples, authorities said, communicated with Donald Peoples via text message during the attack, referencing having Jennings at the house. Donald’s replies suggested he was aware of what was transpiring and advised his cousin to take his time, according to the probable cause affidavit.

The court records also show that after the initial assault, Kennan Peoples and Patrick transported Jennings—still bound and with her head covered—in a Nissan Frontier. The suspects allegedly used Jennings’s phone to send themselves money through her own Cash App account before stopping for gas.

Later that night, the men drove to Jennings’s home in Portageville, leaving her cellphone near her residence in an apparent attempt to mislead investigators. They then returned to the Hayti house, where Donald Peoples was present. Police say Jennings was brought inside, still tied up and covered, in the presence of Donald Peoples.

Patrick told investigators he became frightened during subsequent events, particularly after Kennan Peoples took Jennings to a bedroom to continue the assault. Fearing for his safety, Patrick said he left the scene in the Nissan Frontier and headed out of state.

Preliminary findings indicate Jennings died sometime between the evening of November 3 and the morning of November 4. Authorities believe Donald and Kennan Peoples remained at the house overnight with Jennings deceased inside. Her body was later disposed of in a remote area of Pemiscot County, where law enforcement located her on Friday following multiple leads and a review of surveillance footage.

The three men were taken into custody over the weekend. Kennan Peoples faces charges including first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, first-degree rape, and evidence tampering. Donald Peoples is charged with first-degree murder and evidence tampering, while Patrick is facing charges as an accessory to murder, first-degree rape, and kidnapping.

All suspects are scheduled to be formally arraigned in court on Monday. The case remains under investigation as officials continue to gather details about the events leading up to Jennings’s death.