Teen Girl Texted Aunt In Fear Of Dad Before He Allegedly Beat Her To Death

An Illinois man stands accused of beating his teenage daughter to death on the night of her senior prom.

Mohammed Almaru, 42, has been charged with first-degree murder for the beating death of his 17-year-old daugher, Mia Maro, according to court records from the State’s Attorney’s Office sent to Oxygen.com. The father and daughter apparently fought over Mia's planned attendance at her high school prom on Friday, shortly before Mohammed beat her with a metal pipe and a rubber mallet.

Mia’s mother — Mohammed’s wife — Audrey Jorgenson, also lived in the Tinley Park home, which is less than 30 minutes south of Chicago. Jorgenson had suffered a traumatic brain injury from a 2019 medical emergency that left her confined to a wheelchair and mostly non-communicative, records show. Mohammed's sisters, Linda Maro and Randa Almaru, were Jorgenson’s primary caretakers with assistance from Mia, but did not live at the home.

The last time Randa had been in contact with Mia was on Tuesday, April 26, according to Chicago NBC affiliate WMAQ; Mia was supposed to come home by 11:30 a.m. to relieve Randa, who had another appointment. When she didn't arrive on time, Mia texted that she'd accidentally rear-ended someone while driving her father’s car.

Mia texted that her father would “beat her ass” and was “going to kill her.”

On Thursday, Jorgensen's sister, Emily Jennings, visited the home and talked with Mia, she told Fox affiliate WFLD

The court documents reviewed by WMAQ suggest that Mia had told friends and family she planned to attend the high school prom on Friday, April 29 in a dress her father picked out. But, after Jennings' visit, Mohammed allegedly changed his mind about Mia going to prom, claiming she couldn’t be trusted.

On Friday, Linda arrived at the home to take care of Jorgensen, according to the documents seen by WMAQ, and turned on the "Find My iPhone" to see if Mia had gone to the prom, which was being held in Chicago, as she'd said she would. Instead, it showed Mia's phone in two different locations in Tinley Park.

On Saturday, Linda texted Mia but got no response. She drove by the residence and found it odd that the blinds were closed, noting that Mia had a habit of opening the blinds in the house every morning.

That same evening, Mohammed texted one of his adult sons (who did not live in the home) to see if he had heard from Mia, which he had not. Mohammed later texted Linda that Mia would respond within an hour, but she never did.

On Sunday morning, Linda tried Mia again and got no response — so she texted Randa. Mohammed's sisters decided that Randa should pretend to want to buy marijuana from her brother in order to get in the house, and, after a series of texts around 2:00 p.m., he agreed to let her come over.

Then, around 4:00 p.m., Mohammed texted his son a picture of himself holding a letter.

“In that letter, the defendant blamed his wife for making his daughter, Mia, think that he didn’t love her,” the document stated.

Mohammed accused Mia of hiding things from him, claiming he had to “beat the information out of her.” He claimed he went through Mia’s phone and found something that allegedly proved she was not being truthful.

“I lost my mind, went out of control, and beat the s*** out of her and [accidentally] hit her in the head,” Mohammed texted his son, court records show. “And then I laid down with her and was [unconscious] and woke up to her cold body.”

“I f***** up big time,” he added. “I’m sorry.”

Randa arrived shortly thereafter, reporting that Mohammed appeared “disheveled.” Mohammed excused himself for his bedroom while Randa sat with Jorgensen.

When Mohammed didn’t return, Randa knocked on the door, at which point Mohammed said he “needed more time.”

Randa entered the bedroom after she heard “gurgling” and found her brother with his arm around Mia’s cold body, which was covered by a blanket.

“The defendant had slit marks on his neck and wrists and a box cutter near his right hand,” according to court records. “There were bloodstains on [his] pants, shirt, and socks.”

She called police. Mia was pronounced dead on the scene around 5:00 p.m.

According to CBS News, Mohammed also ingested pills, causing him to need intubation at the hospital. The self-inflicted wounds were reportedly superficial.

A postmortem examination found Mia had “extensive hemorrhaging and bleeding, and her body was covered in bruising,” including on her back, forearms, hands, legs and feet.

Investigators found a bent metal pole containing blood and hair on the kitchen floor. They also found a rubber mallet that appeared to have blood on it in the garage.

A tarp and bungee cords were also collected as evidence.

CBS News reported that Mia was just days away from her senior graduation at Andrew High School.

“Mia was a beautiful soul and the light of our lives,” Mia's Aunt Randa on a GoFundMe page. “She was a 17-year-old girl with a thirst for life.”

They've stated that all expenses raised will go towards funeral expenses for Mia, future care for her mother and any legal assistance required to manage the custodial transition for Jorgensen's care.

"In an effort to be fully transparent, the families' number one priority is justice for Mia," they added in an update. "We are cooperating with the investigation to ensure we honor her properly."

Mohammed Almaru faces 20 to 60 years behind bars if convicted of first-degree murder. Jail records show he is being housed at the county jail’s medical treatment center. He is due to appear in court on May 9.