Kemp Xavier Sherrod Harriel, 26, was found dead in the front passenger seat of a stalled 2010 Chevrolet Malibu on westbound Interstate 80 near Grinnell on the morning of October 3, 2023. Troopers discovered the unresponsive Black male under a pile of clothing after the driver, 23-year-old Jihah Abdul-Malik Gasaway of Cedar Rapids, told them he needed a jump start and that he was carrying a gun. Harriel had sustained two gunshot wounds to the chest; medical services pronounced him dead at the scene and investigators determined the shooting happened inside the car.

Gasaway was initially arrested and charged with abuse of a corpse; after an autopsy ruled Harriel’s death a homicide, the charge was upgraded to first-degree murder. Harriel, originally from Chicago, Illinois, worked as a cook and was remembered by family and friends as adventurous, well traveled and funny. If anyone has information about Harriel’s final trip from Cedar Rapids to Des Moines, please come forward.