Macon Jury Convicts Yazeed of Murder in Blanchard Case

A Macon County jury convicted Ibraheem Yazeed, 36, of murder and felony murder on Thursday in the 2019 killing of 19-year-old Alabama college student Aniah Blanchard, but acquitted him of capital murder charges that could have led to the death penalty. The verdict came after a six-day trial in Tuskegee, Alabama, marking the end of a case that drew national attention and prompted changes to state law.

Blanchard, a student at Southern Union State Community College and stepdaughter of former UFC heavyweight fighter Walt Harris, disappeared on October 23, 2019, after stopping at a convenience store in Auburn, Alabama. Surveillance video captured her and Yazeed inside the store at the same time. An eyewitness later told investigators that Yazeed forced Blanchard into her 2017 Honda CR-V against her will. The vehicle was found abandoned two days later, containing significant amounts of blood. Her remains were discovered on November 25, 2019, in a wooded area along County Road 2 in Shorter, in neighboring Macon County. An autopsy determined she had been shot once in the abdomen while in the passenger seat of her car and again in the head after Yazeed carried her into the woods.