Hadeel Hikmat had moved to North Carolina about a year before her death.
PITTSBORO, N.C. — Hadeel Ghadhanfer Hikmat’s move from Iraq to North Carolina ended in a murder case that sent her husband to prison for decades after he admitted killing her and hiding her body in Jordan Lake.
Omar Matthew Ibrahim Drabick, 37, pleaded guilty in May 2026 to second-degree murder and concealment of death. The plea resolved the killing of Hikmat, 34, whose body was found Aug. 29, 2023, near the Farrington Point Boat Ramp in Chatham County. A judge sentenced Drabick to 25 to 31 years for the murder count and another six to nine years for concealing the death, with the terms set to run one after the other.
For Hikmat’s family, the case stretched across continents. Her brother, Firas Hikmat, lived in Turkey and spoke publicly after the body was identified and Drabick was arrested. He said Hadeel had a large family in Iraq and was loved by many people. He had last spoken with her shortly before her death, then contacted police after he could not reach her. “We lost our sister; we want justice,” he said after learning that investigators had charged Drabick. In another statement, he said, “Rest in peace my sis. God, Allah, and law know you are a victim. We love you Hadeel.”
Hikmat had moved to the United States about a year before she died. Investigators said the marriage had been arranged by Drabick’s mother, who later expressed guilt in court because of her role in bringing the couple together. The judge told her she should not blame herself, saying no one enters an arranged marriage expecting such a tragedy. Prosecutors said the relationship had grown tense and that Drabick wanted out. A warrant said he had wished Hikmat would leave him for a wealthy man. The case did not turn on cultural background alone, but on the evidence prosecutors said showed a husband killing his wife and trying to cover it up.
The final night began with work and a meal. Hikmat had finished a shift at Walmart when Drabick picked her up. They went to a Denny’s restaurant, then continued into the early morning hours of Aug. 29, 2023. Investigators said Drabick later drove her to a bridge near Jordan Lake shortly after 2:30 a.m. There, prosecutors said, Hikmat was shot in the back. Authorities said her body was thrown from the bridge into the lake. Hours later, a boater saw a body floating face-down in shallow water near Farrington Point Road and called deputies.
At first, investigators released few details. The Chatham County Sheriff’s Office said the woman had been identified through fingerprint analysis and that her death was not accidental or self-inflicted. The autopsy later found a gunshot wound in the middle of Hikmat’s upper back. The medical examiner said the severity of the wound made it likely she died before the water could play a major role. The report also noted bruising on her arm and ankle and a cut on her back. A toxicology report was negative for alcohol. Investigators found blood, shell casings and jewelry on a nearby bridge, strengthening their belief that the bridge was the scene of the attack.
As deputies worked, Drabick told a story that did not hold. He told a friend that after dinner he and Hikmat met an Iraqi man in a van at a park around 2 a.m. He claimed the man kissed Hikmat, said she should be with someone who had money and left with her. The friend told investigators that the account made no sense. Authorities later said Drabick’s version did not fit the evidence. They pointed instead to the bridge, the timing after the Denny’s meal and forensic findings from his shoes and vehicle. Reports on the investigation said Hikmat’s blood was found on Drabick’s shoes and in the trunk of his car.
Investigators also found signs that Drabick had prepared for violence or thought about escape from punishment. Prosecutors said he had recently bought the gun used in the killing. They also said searches on his phone related to getting away with murder. Deputies searched the couple’s Apex home and another Wake County location before making an arrest. On Sept. 19, 2023, the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office charged Drabick with first-degree murder and concealment of an unnatural death. He was held without bond as the case moved through court.
The courtroom ending came nearly three years after Hikmat was found in the lake. Drabick’s guilty plea lowered the case from the original first-degree murder charge to second-degree murder, but it still carried a long sentence. He also admitted an aggravating factor because he had a close personal relationship with Hikmat. Prosecutor Marci Trageser said at sentencing that what happened between the couple had spiraled out of control. Defense attorneys said Drabick struggled with autism and did not have the social skills needed to end the marriage peacefully. When asked if he wanted to speak, Drabick apologized, saying he was sorry from the bottom of his heart.
Sheriff Mike Roberson said after the arrest that his office’s thoughts were with Hikmat’s family and other families dealing with missing loved ones. He described the case as a reminder of the tragedy of domestic violence. For Hikmat’s relatives, the plea brought a legal answer but not the return of the woman they described as deeply loved. The court record now lists Drabick as convicted in her death and sentenced to consecutive prison terms.
The case stands closed in the trial court unless new post-conviction filings are made. Hikmat’s killing remains tied to the late-night drive from Apex to Jordan Lake, the bridge evidence and the family members left to mourn her from North Carolina, Turkey and Iraq.
Author note: Last updated June 18, 2026.