ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — UPDATE: The escaped Georgia inmate accused of shooting and killing a Polk County man has died by suicide. Click or tap here for an updated article.
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A Georgia inmate who escaped from a transitional center is now wanted for the shooting death of a 30-year-old Lakeland man, law enforcement says.
Stephen Michael Smith, 34, is accused of shooting 30-year-old Daniel Lee Upton of Lakeland, Florida, according to the Gulf County Sheriff's Office.
The shooting happened Monday morning on Sea Pines Lane in St. Joe Beach, Florida, likely spurring from a drug deal gone bad, the sheriff's office said. Just prior to Upton losing consciousness, investigators say he identified Smith as the shooter.
Smith is wanted for absconding from a work-release program out of a center in Georgia, where a statewide "be on the lookout" alert was issued. He had been serving time in Clayton County for robbery.
A $10,000 reward is being offered by the U.S. Marshals Service for information leading to Smith's capture. He is described as 5 feet, 10 inches tall, weighs about 180 pounds and has green eyes and brown hair.
Anyone who comes in contact with Smith is asked to not to apprehend him. Instead, give 911 a call.
The Gulf County Sheriff's Office said its deputies also arrested 44-year-old Destiny Jene Terry, saying she was the one who facilitated the contact between Smith and Upton. She is charged with principal to second-degree murder.
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