According to witness testimony, a Michigan man charged with the murder of a missing mother requested assistance from friends in moving her body.
Keyvonte Deshawn Clark, 31, appeared in Wayne County Court on Tuesday. Witnesses testified about what they allegedly heard him say in the days after Jessica Bedford, 34, went missing in 2020. According to courtroom reporting by local NBC affiliate WDIV, a witness identified as Clark’s longtime friend stated that the suspect knocked on his door one night in 2020 and told him, “I f—ed up” and “I shot the b—.”
The witness reportedly testified that he initially did not believe Clark. He stated that later, he met Clark and a mutual friend, who mentioned needing assistance in Clark’s basement. He also stated that he overheard the mutual friend say something about moving a body.
According to WDIV, the prosecution asked the witness if he saw anything while in Clark’s basement; he responded that he did not. The prosecutor then reportedly reminded the witness that he had previously told police that he saw plastic in the basement. The witness denied seeing any plastic on the stand on Tuesday.
The witness reportedly told the court that he berated Clark for involving him in his alleged attempt to move a dead body, to which Clark replied, “My bad.”
When questioned by the defense, the witness allegedly admitted that he was at Clark’s house for drugs and had been “a little” high during the encounters he described.
Tuesday’s witness was not the only one who stated that they heard Clark discuss moving a dead body. During a preliminary exam in court on June 5, Clark’s ex-girlfriend, whose identity was kept hidden due to threats, told prosecutors that she overheard Clark tell a friend, “[t]hat he was about to kill Jessica.”
The woman explained that she thought she was pregnant with Clark’s child. She then described an incident in which she was allegedly sexually assaulted by an unidentified friend while at Clark’s house, with Bedford present.
Following the alleged assault, Clark reportedly blamed Bedford for allowing it to occur. She told the court that when she told Clark over the phone about the alleged assault, “I can hear him yelling, saying ‘You let him come in here and rape my baby mama.'” The woman claimed that she heard Bedford, who was with Clark, sound “confused” and ask, “What are you talking about?”
The woman then told the court that she heard gunshots, and Clark allegedly stated, “He just killed Jessica over and over.” After hearing the gunshots on the phone, I heard [Clark’s friend] say ‘Die b—.'” She never heard from Bedford again.
She also testified that she witnessed Clark and his friend burning a couch in Clark’s living room and discussing moving her body to the basement. While on the stand, she stated that she overheard the men discussing their plans to burn Bedford’s body.
The woman told the court that she was afraid of Clark, which prevented her from coming forward with information.
Bedford was reported missing on May 30, 2020. Her mother stated that Bedford called her on Mother’s Day that year, and she never heard from her daughter again. Her body was never discovered.
Clark is charged with first-degree murder, mutilation of a deceased person, and two felony weapons offenses. His next court date has yet to be scheduled.
