In the summer of 2021, a concerned granddaughter's call to the police unfolded a tragic scene in a Kansas City, Missouri home. On July 15th, officers entered the residence in the 3200 block of Woodland Avenue to discover the bodies of 25-year-old Jaelin Ransom, his 63-year-old mother Shirley Muhammad, and his 23-year-old sister Tyla Ransom. The family had not been heard from for two days, prompting the welfare check.
Upon entering the home through an ajar back door, the police first
found Jaelin Ransom seated on a stairway landing. A peculiar and unsettling detail was the presence of a $100 bill placed over his eyes. As they proceeded to the second floor, they discovered more blood on the floor and walls, leading them to the bodies of Shirley Muhammad and Tyla Ransom. Each of the three victims had been fatally stabbed, and each had a $100 bill placed on their head. A bent and broken serrated kitchen knife, believed to be the murder weapon, was found in the home, along with bloodied boxer shorts.
The investigation quickly focused on a family member, Rahman M. Muhammad, who was Jaelin and Tyla's 38-year-old brother and Shirley's son. Family members had reportedly been worried about his increasingly erratic and aggressive behavior. Shirley Muhammad had expressed concerns about her son, who was said to have a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia, in the days leading up to the murders. Further investigation revealed that Rahman Muhammad had sought treatment for wrist pain at a local hospital on the night of the killings, claiming he had been 'rough housing' with friends, but left without being treated. Detectives also noted fresh cuts on his hand and what appeared to be blood on his clothing.
Rahman M. Muhammad was arrested and subsequently charged with three counts of second-degree murder and three counts of armed criminal action in connection with the deaths of his mother and siblings. DNA evidence from the bloodied shorts found at the scene reportedly linked both Jaelin Ransom and Rahman Muhammad to the crime. His cell phone records also placed him in the area of the family home on the day the murders are believed to have occurred. Following the tragic discovery, friends and family gathered for a vigil to remember and honor the lives of Jaelin, Tyla, and Shirley, grappling with the immense loss of three family members in such a violent manner.
