Missouri mother and 3-year-old daughter among 6 missing after joining an online cult

Six people from Missouri have been reported missing since August 2023. Ma’Kayla Wickerson (pictured), 25, and her daughter Malaiyah Wickerson (pictured), 3, Mikayla Thompson, 25, of St. Louis; Gerrielle German, 27, of Lake Horn, Mississippi; Ashton Williams, 2, of Lake Horn; along with Naaman Williams, 30, of Washington, D.C., have been missing since their online spiritual leader was sentenced to 18 years in prison. They were last seen on August 13, 2023, at a Quality Inn Hotel in Florissant, Missouri.

An investigation by the Berkeley Police Department in Missouri reveals a mysterious connection to Rashad Jamal, a social media influencer and rapper who created The University of Cosmic Intelligence — an online religious group with thousands of followers.

When police inspected the rental house the missing individuals shared, it appeared as if the residents had left temporarily, with food in the microwave and laundry in progress. Valuables, including an expensive collection of shoes, were left behind. The discovery of an altar, copper-wrapped items, and other peculiar findings led authorities to suspect the group was deeply immersed in a cult. Major Steve Runge, who is investigating this missing persons case remarked that evidenced indicated the individuals were, “living this cult.”

Neighbors reported observing the group engaging in daily meditation or worship in the backyard, sometimes clothed and other times naked.

Despite efforts by law enforcement, there are still no clues about the whereabouts of the missing individuals months later. Major Steve Runge expressed bewilderment, stating, “These people are gone, and it blows my mind.”

Jamal, previously convicted of of child molestation and cruelty to children in Georgia, was sentenced to 18 years in prison and 22 years on parole in August around the same time that the group went missing.