The man accused of abducting a 4-year-old northeast Missouri girl has now been linked to a murder in his hometown.
Authorities say they found a gun stolen in a burglary in Pike County last month in the home of Paul Smith. Ballistics tests confirmed it was the gun used to kill Jeffrey “Smitty” Smith of Hawk Point. The two are not related. Smitty, a local garage owner, was found dead outside his shop July 3rd. He died of a single gunshot wound to the head.
Paul Smith killed himself as authorities sought to arrest him in the kidnapping of 4-year-old Alisa Maier of Louisiana, Missouri. The girl was found wandering in a Fenton strip mall parking lot unharmed. She has been returned to her family.
Members of the Major Case Squad say the gun used to kill Jeffrey Smith isn’t the same gun Paul Smith used to kill himself. Authorities believe Paul Smith also was responsible for dozens of burglaries that had taken place in the Hawk Point and Bowling Green areas over the past few weeks. Investigators speculate that Jeffrey Smith interrupted a burglary at his garage when he was shot.
