U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri: Two KC Men Indicted for Cyberstalking That Resulted in Murder

KANSAS CITY, Missouri, Nov. 9 -- The office of the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri issued the following news release:

Two Kansas City, Mo., men have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a conspiracy that used a GPS tracking device to surveil their victim, who was shot to death in a grocery store parking lot.

Lawrence Courtney Lawhorn, 35, and Michael Smith, also known as "Black Mike," 37, were charged in a three-count superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday, Nov. 7. The superseding indictment replaces the original indictment and adds Lawhorn as a defendant. Co-defendant Dontay Campbell, 34, formerly of Kansas City, Mo., has pleaded guilty and therefore is not charged in this superseding indictment.

The federal indictment alleges that Lawhorn, Smith and Campbell participated in the cyberstalking conspiracy, which resulted in the murder of Dontayus Wiles, from Feb. 22 to March 20, 2019. The indictment alleges that Lawhorn shot a firearm multiple times at Wiles and killed him.

According to the indictment, conspirators placed a GPS tracking device on Wiles's red Chevrolet Tahoe. On March 16, 2019, Lawhorn and Campbell surveilled Wiles as he drove to Happy Foods grocery store, located at 4019 E. 31st Street, Kansas City, Mo. When Wiles left the grocery store and walked back to the Tahoe, Lawhorn and Campbell pulled up next to the Tahoe in a Chrysler Sebring. Lawhorn allegedly exited the Sebring and shot at Wiles several times with a Sturm, Ruger & Co. .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun. During the shooting spree, Campbell attempted unsuccessfully to remove the GPS tracker from Wiles's vehicle.

Lawhorn and Campbell then ran back to the Sebring, briefly drove around the parking lot, and parked again near Wiles's Tahoe. Lawhorn allegedly again fired multiple shots into Wiles's Tahoe while Campbell again tried unsuccessfully to retrieve the GPS tracker. Lawhorn and Campbell then sped out of the parking lot in the Sebring.

According to the indictment, Lawhorn and Smith then dumped the Sebring. Smith and Campbell left the Kansas City metropolitan area and traveled to Phoenix, Arizona.

In addition to the conspiracy, Lawhorn and Smith are charged with one count of cyberstalking resulting in death.

Lawhorn is also charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Lawhorn has prior felony convictions for assault, possession of a controlled substance, unlawful use of a weapon, armed criminal action and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Lawhorn has also pleaded guilty to his role in an insurance fraud scheme and awaits sentencing.

The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and are not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Trey Alford and Nicholas Heberle. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

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Original text here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmo/pr/two-kc-men-indicted-cyberstalking-resulted-murder