12th October, 2019
The woman, identified as Kathleen Jo Henry was murdered in September, according to Anchorage Daily News.
Detectives say videos that Smith apparently shot on Sept. 4 and Sept. 6 show him beating, choking and killing Henry in a room at the TownePlace Suites by Marriott before he removed her body on a luggage cart and loaded her into his pickup truck.
Police say a citizen on Sept. 30 found a small memory card near the Carrs store at Gambell Street and 13th Avenue. The card contained 39 images and 12 videos that showed a naked, badly injured woman later identified as Henry on the floor of the hotel, according to charging documents.
Other images showed a man detectives later identified as Smith yelling at her to die. She tried to fight back, the charges say.
Henry was identified Thursday as the woman whose remains were found near the Seward Highway south of Anchorage on Oct. 2.
Smith was arrested Tuesday as he returned to Anchorage by plane from an unknown destination. He’s being held at the Anchorage Jail on a total of $750,000 in appearance and performance bonds
A coworker said Smith was in the hospitality business before he moved to Alaska and sold items online in the winter when he wasn’t working.
It’s not clear what job he held recently. He told the judge at his arraignment Wednesday that he had about $2,000 in savings.
Smith on his Facebook profile describes himself as “self-employed” and said he grew up in Queenstown, Eastern Cape and went to Queens College.
In August, he replied to this question posted on the site: “Do white people assume all black people are thieves?” Smith’s response: “White people do not assume this. EVERYONE assumes this when they look at police crime statistics. Everywhere in the world where blacks go there is an immediate increase in crime. It is a statistical fact that blacks are +- 600% more prone to breaking the law than whites.”
He entered the military following school, according to a South African reporter who translated an Afrikaans publication’s story about the “Alaska-moord”. Smith’s father died when he was relatively young, friends told the publication. Smith was described as quiet and stand-offish.
Smith left South Africa in 2013, according to a biography he posted on the Quora question-and-answer platform. He also posted hundreds of replies to questions about South Africa and apartheid, some with racist overtones, through the fall and into October.
In August, he replied to this question posted on the site: “Do white people assume all black people are thieves?”
Smith’s response: “White people do not assume this. EVERYONE assumes this when they look at police crime statistics. Everywhere in the world where blacks go there is an immediate increase in crime. It is a statistical fact that blacks are +- 600% more prone to breaking the law than whites.”
His next scheduled court appearance is a hearing on Oct. 21.