"The information and the evidence points to: It was not a panhandler [beggar]," Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said at a news conference. "People took advantage of Baltimore. We want to make sure the truth comes out and justice is done."
Marilyn Mosby, the state's attorney for Baltimore, said that "oftentimes we have these negative depictions about our city, and it's rather unfortunate when people take advantage of these negative depictions."
Keith Smith and his daughter were arrested in Texas just north of the Mexican border. They were arraigned in Cameron County court, just north of Brownsville, Texas. The two are charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, assault and a dangerous-weapons count, according to the Baltimore Sun.
Harrison declined to provide details about how police had come to finger Keith Smith and his daughter. But he said that police had been made aware that Keith Smith attempted to leave Maryland during the investigation; Harrison told the Baltimore Sun's editorial board that the timing of their arrest was affected by how close they were to Mexico.
"I can say that being notified that they were in Texas certainly added to the evidence we already had to convince us that it was not the homeless person, [and] probable cause existed that it was more than likely their involvement," Harrison told the Sun. "I think there's enough evidence to support that this still would have been the outcome."
In a statement, Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh called the latest development "very troubling and sad."
"To now learn that family members staged this brutal killing is beyond belief and represents a double tragedy," Pugh said. "They were responsible for taking Jacquelyn's life with unconscionable cruelty, and contrived to do so in our city under the guise of random violence, exploiting the legitimate fears of our residents."
