On January 30, 2023, it will mark the one-year anniversary of the disappearance of Alexis Ware, a 30-year-old individual from Anderson, South Carolina, located approximately 40 minutes away from her residence in Greenville, South Carolina.
The story of Alexis Ware has resonated with a vast audience worldwide, yet recent revelations obtained by The North Carolina Beat provide insight into potential individuals who may possess knowledge regarding Alexis’s whereabouts and shed light on the perceived lackadaisical and negligent approach of the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office investigation.
The account portrays a woman with promising prospects who desired to pursue her goals independently alongside her son and daughter, only to mysteriously vanish without them.
During a recent discussion with The North Carolina Beat, Alexis’s mother, Alberta Gray-Simpkins, expressed her belief that TJ Patterson, the father of Alexis’s son, played a role in her disappearance. Despite these suspicions, law enforcement authorities exonerated TJ, citing his ankle monitor data as evidence of his whereabouts. According to law enforcement reports, TJ’s ankle monitor GPS data indicated that he remained at his residence following his return from picking up his son and Alexis’s daughter.
On the weekend of January 28-30, 2022, Alexis visited her mother, Alberta, with her two children. During her stay, Alexis expressed concerns to her mother about feeling pursued by an unidentified individual she referred to as the “devil.” Additionally, she mentioned to Alberta that she believed someone was following her, but did not specify who.
The following day, January 29, Alexis shared with Alberta her not reaching her upcoming 30th birthday, which was two months away. Despite Alberta’s inquiries, Alexis chose not to divulge further details about her distress.
On January 30, Alexis departed from her mother’s residence around noon and returned to her apartment in Greenville. Later that day, Alberta conversed with Alexis, who was preparing to rest in bed. Subsequently, TJ Patterson, the father of Alexis’s son, contacted Alberta inquiring about Alexis’s whereabouts. TJ recounted meeting Alexis at a 7-Eleven Gas Station in Anderson, South Carolina, where he retrieved their children.
Alexis was expected to follow TJ to his mother’s residence, but instead, she accelerated past him and turned right at a traffic light, separating from the group.
Alberta attempted to contact her daughter following the call from TJ regarding them meeting, however, Alexis did not answer the call. Alexis was not heard from on Monday, January 31, 2022, prompting her family to report her as missing to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office the following day.
On Sunday, January 30, 2022, at 8:35 pm, Alexis’s cell phone registered a signal in Abbeville County. Surveillance cameras recorded her vehicle leaving Belton Woods Apartments at 7:30 and 8:50 pm on the same day. Subsequently, Alexis’s 2019 Red Honda Accord was discovered abandoned, containing her phone, her daughter’s phone, keys, and purse, along with a bag of clothes in the trunk and her black hair bonnet on the ground nearby.
Law enforcement officials have indicated that they were able to retrieve fingerprints from Alexis’s vehicle but have refrained from disclosing the identity a*sociated with these prints.
Alexis, a talented hairstylist running her own studio from home, was a social media maven with aspirations of becoming an Instagram sensation. Despite facing challenges from her son’s father, TJ Patterson, she refused to let it dim her dreams. With plans to launch her own boutique in Atlanta and create a brighter future for her children, Alexis was determined to make it happen. Recently granted permission to break her lease, she was on the cusp of a new chapter as she awaited approval for housing in Atlanta.
In a sprawling email sent on January 23, 2022, to her former apartment manager, she meticulously outlined the purported mistreatment she endured from TJ Patterson. She labeled him as “abusive, domineering, and deceitful,” expressing her fear that remaining in his presence would only lead to further harm. Alexis ended her relationship with TJ in December 2021.
“I feel the more I stay around him, he’s going to really hurt me one day…I got to leave and I’m trying to leave fast and quietly. I need help,” Alexis wrote in the email to her complex manager.
In the email, Alexis expressed her exhaustion with tolerating TJ’s mistreatment in front of her kids, emphasizing that her and her children’s well-being took precedence in her eyes.
“I’m trying to leave an abusive relationship on all levels,” Alexis said in the email. “I wasn’t strong enough then but I’m ready now! My life and kids are more important.”
In the email, Alexis mentioned how she came to TJ’s rescue during his legal woes, going above and beyond by dipping into her savings to hire not one, but two legal attorneys for him. She even revealed that she shelled out a whopping $50,000 from her kids’ nest egg to support him.
“He took everything from me,” she said in the email.
Meet the one and only TJ, also known as Travis Howard Patterson, a 34-year-old individual who is currently enjoying some time out on bond. His impressive list of charges includes Attempted Murder, Discharging A Firearm Into A Dwelling, Criminal Conspiracy, Obstruction Of Justice, Possession of a Weapon During A Violent Crime, and First-Degree Burglary. Quite the resume, wouldn’t you say?
In the email, Alexis vividly recounted a disturbing incident where TJ supposedly attacked her in front of her young son, his own parents, and other relatives, all for no apparent reason. She described how she saw bringing her son to TJ’s family’s home as an opportunity for him to harm her. Alexis lamented that after the alleged a*sault, TJ’s family seemed more concerned about why she involved the police rather than the violence itself.
Due to the traumatic experiences at TJ’s family residence, Alexis now arranges to meet a family member or his mother “off the highway in Anderson.” It’s quite possible that Alexis had no clue that TJ would be the one picking up his son; she likely a*sumed it would be a relative or his mother instead.
“I got to get out while I got the chance now. He already killed 2 people years ago in his past early teens which is why he did jail time,” Alexis says in the email. “Only 10 years.”
Each time Alexis extended an olive branch to TJ, he reportedly continued to mistreat her, but this time, Alexis had reached her breaking point and decided to cut ties with him for good.
“This time I can’t let this chance pa*s me to get away because that same GPS controls his every move, he can’t even leave out of town, he has a 9pm curfew for now. So this is my shot!, Alexis said in the email.
In the email, Alexis declared her independence from TJ, vowing to keep her cool until she could make her grand escape with her little ones in tow.
“But I know for a fact Im done but if I can play it cool long enough that’s what I’m doing but I’m in fear for my life…,” Alexis wrote.
The 30-year-old woman mentioned that she distanced herself from everyone out of fear that someone might have leaked her plans to him.
Alexis also recalled in the email that TJ allegedly told her that he hadn’t “smoked” her yet because he was on GPS monitoring.
“He actually told me on the phone the only reason why he ain’t smoked me yet is only because he’s on GPS”, Alexis said in the email.
READ FULL EMAIL BELOW:
In a series of text messages supposedly from TJ, he expresses his strong dislike for Alexis and his desire to cause her harm.
“You just don’t know how much I hate you n want to hurt you. Don’t f**kn text me period,” TJ allegedly says in the text message.
Alexis responds back, “I won’t. I’ll just got through your mom bout everything! Don’t worry,” to which TJ allegedly text back and says “B***h die.”
In another text message, TJ allegedly apologizes to Alexis for what he did and says “you was never supposed to put no police n involved with nothing.”
Alexis responds back saying, “I didn’t make you do what you did.. I was simply trying to be cordial with you about our child.. smh how can you not expect me to be upset when I didn’t do nothing to you.. big as you are compared to me. big of man compared to a female I couldn’t even defend myself…but that’s that hate coming out I guess idk I can sit here all day tryna figure that out or understand why it happened but i’ll never know..”
In another text message, Alexis sends TJ a picture of her face bloodied and beaten, along with some words. In response, he says he doesn’t remember what happened because he blacked out.
“I honestly don’t remember what really happen, it’s like I blinked out but on God you never have to worry bout this again.”
“You want me n jail?”, a text message is sent to Alexis allegedly by TJ to which Alexis responds, “you going mf! You can’t even be grown bout our f**kinchild!! B***h if you done you done!!Df you need to put your f**kin hands on me for!! Then think you not gon get locked df up.”
TJ also sent Alberta a text message apologizing to her for a*saulting her daughter.
In a Facebook message, Alexis is chatting with a friend about a photo showing a black eye she got from TJ.
READ ALL MY TEXT MESSAGES BELOW:
Alberta told The North Carolina Beat that Detective Jason Fowler with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department had not contacted her since last year. He also has copies of the email Alexis sent to her complex manager and text messages that TJ allegedly sent to Alexis.
“Detective Fowler won’t answer my calls or emails and have been silent and has done nothing for my daughter,” Alberta said.
Alberta said she found the email Alexis sent to the apartment complex manager in Alexis’s email account, with the text messages attached. Alberta said she believes TJ set her daughter up, and the motive was that he didn’t want Alexis to move to Atlanta with their son. Alberta now has custody of both of Alexis’s children.
January 30, 2023, will mark one year since Alexis Ware went missing, and her whereabouts remain unknown.
Contact Detective Jason Fowler at [email protected] and urge him to do his job and find Alexis! You can also contact Detective Fowler at (864) 260-4420.
Do you have a story you think the public should know about? Send it to [email protected]
Follow me, Gerald, on Instagram @iiamgj and Facebook @TheOfficialGeraldJackson
To support The North Carolina Beat, donate by clicking HERE or Cash App $itsgjtheceo
#JUSTICEFORALEXISWARE
