MOLINE, Illinois – Moline Police say Jordan Burroughs was dead for almost a month before she was found.
Moline Police say Burroughs died on Oct. 23. That was the day police say she was last seen in an argument with her boyfriend, Kyle Dykeman, at the HyVee on Avenue of the Cities, which was caught on surveillance cameras.
"Dykeman told investigators that, while at Hy-Vee, he and Burroughs got into a fight," Moline Detective Jon Leach said in a statement. "Dykeman stated he went home, went to bed and, upon waking up on Oct. 24, Burroughs was gone and he had not seen her since."
The 37-year-old was found dead inside a freezer in the detached garage of her home on Nov. 21. This comes after Dykeman stabbed her to death. Police say they had surveillance on Dykeman on Nov. 19 that day.
When he knew they were closing in, he drove to a Davenport hotel and died by suicide due to asphyxia by hanging.
"Evidence was recovered that showed Dykeman cleaned up an area in the dining room," said Leach in a statement.
"Biological evidence was located inside the residence under carpet pads. Evidence was located in the master bedroom in the form of handwritten notes, written by Dykeman, in which Dykeman alluded to killing Burroughs."
Police say they checked on Burroughs’ home three times for a welfare check before they found her dead – two times for Dykeman’s abusive behavior before she died and once two weeks after Dykeman killed her. But it wasn't until the family came forward that the police had a probable cause to perform a search warrant.
“Everything was pretty much unfolded in 8 to 9 hours,” says Detective Jon Leach of the Moline Police Department. “She had been communicating with friends and family via text message, which turns out it was Kyle the entire time.”
We spoke with Burroughs’ daughter about a week ago and she says she was one of the people on the other end of the phone.
“I could tell that it was different than usually how she texts,” says Jayda Murphy. “So, I sent it around to my family and friends and I asked if this was something she would say, and they were like 'no'.”
The text messages said she broke up with Dykeman and moved to Des Moines to be with her new boyfriend, police say. But Murphy says she would never do that.
“Her text messages stopped on Nov. 7,” Detective Leach says. “So, after all communication had stopped, I think the friends and family members became more suspicious.”
Two weeks after the texts stopped police say friends and family reached out on social media, and with their help police say they had the evidence they needed.
“The totality of all the bits and pieces that family and friends put together, when you put it together it made a full puzzle,” Leach says.
Burroughs was an employee at the HyVee on Avenue of the Cities, she also was a hair stylist and ran a business out of her home.
To donate to Jordan Burroughs' family please go to the Go Fund Me.