A balloon release in St. Louis came days after prosecutors charged Harris’ former boyfriend in his death.
ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Friends and relatives of 24-year-old Ross Harris gathered in St. Louis on Tuesday evening for a balloon release, remembering him as a steady friend and community volunteer as a murder case tied to his disappearance moved deeper into the court system.
Harris’ death has shaken people in Soulard and beyond because police say the case began as a missing-person investigation and quickly turned into a homicide inquiry with grim details. Prosecutors have charged 27-year-old Ahmad K. Jackson, described in court records as Harris’ former boyfriend, with first-degree murder, armed criminal action and abandonment of a corpse. Harris’ body had not been found as of the latest public reports, leaving family and friends grieving without the chance to bury him.
The case began on April 4, when police were called to investigate Harris’ disappearance. Investigators later identified him as the missing man. According to court records summarized by local news outlets, a witness told police Harris’ phone last pinged at Jackson’s home. Family members then gave investigators a voicemail they said Jackson had left in which he threatened to kill Harris and said relatives would not be able to recognize him afterward. Police also said they found threatening text messages on Harris’ phone accusing him of cheating. In the days that followed, the case drew wider public attention as officers traced phone data, reviewed messages and tried to determine Harris’ last known movements before prosecutors announced charges on April 15.
Police say the evidence they gathered pointed them toward both a shooting and an effort to hide the crime. Investigators said phone records showed Jackson bought a gun in St. Charles, then drove to Harris’ home and later to his own house. Officers reported finding blood inside Jackson’s home and car. During a police interview, authorities said, Jackson admitted he bought the gun, shot Harris and dumped his body in the Mississippi River. Those details have not been tested in court, and public records available so far do not show a final recovery site for Harris’ remains. Jackson was being held at the St. Louis City Justice Center without bond after the charges were filed. No initial court date had been publicly listed in early reports.
For people who knew Harris, the public case file tells only part of the story. KSDK reported that loved ones described him as a beloved godfather, loyal friend and volunteer with Project Thrive, a St. Louis nonprofit. That picture stood in sharp contrast to the allegations laid out by police. At the Tuesday balloon release, mourners gathered not at a courthouse or a police building, but in a space tied to the community work Harris cared about. The event underscored how homicide cases can leave two stories running at once: the legal story of charges, affidavits and evidence, and the personal story of a young man whose daily role in other people’s lives was suddenly cut short.
The legal process is now expected to move through the usual early stages of a murder prosecution, beginning with court appearances, defense representation and further disclosure of evidence. Prosecutors have accused Jackson of the most serious homicide offense under Missouri law, a charge that can carry a sentence of life in prison without parole or the death penalty if a conviction is secured and prosecutors pursue that path. At this stage, the central unresolved issue remains the recovery of Harris’ body. Any future hearings could bring more detail about the timeline, the river search effort, forensic testing and whether additional evidence backs the statements police say Jackson made during questioning.
Tuesday’s gathering put the focus back on Harris himself. Instead of long speeches, the moment was marked by grief and memory. One friend told KSDK that Harris was “such a loving, caring and compassionate person” and said he deserved justice. That kind of language is common after a violent death, but in this case it also reflected the unusual pain of mourning someone whose body has not been recovered. The absence leaves loved ones waiting for both answers and a place to direct their grief. For now, the charges have given the case a legal path forward, but they have not given Harris’ family the full measure of closure they want.
As of Wednesday, Jackson remained jailed without bond, Harris’ body still had not been publicly reported found, and the next major milestone was a court appearance that had not yet been announced in early coverage.
Author note: Last updated April 23, 2026.