Arkansas Teens Kidnap and Murder 71-Year-Old Woman
Daniel Roth, Daily Mail, July 18, 2018
Two teens from Arkansas are facing murder charges after police said they killed a 71-year-old woman who went missing during a shopping trip.
Elvira Fragstein
Tacori Mackrell, 18, and Robert Lee Smith Jr., 16, were arrested by the Faulkner County Sheriff’s Department on Monday in connection with the slaying of Elvia Fragstein, according to People Magazine.
A statement from Faulkner County authorities says that Smith will be prosecuted as an adult.
The two teens were initially arrested on kidnapping and property theft charges earlier in the week. The homicide charges were added on Wednesday.
According to court documents, Fragstein was reported missing on July 7. Her body was later discovered along a road in Jefferson County July 11.
Police believe the two teens kidnapped Fragstein outside a T.J. Maxx retail store in Conway at around 3.30pm.
Surveillance footage shows Fragstein’s 2013 Silver Honda CRV speeding away and exiting the Conway Commons Shopping center parking lot where the store was located.
Police were alerted to Fragstein’s disappearance when her husband became worried after she didn’t return from her shopping excursion.
Her car was later discovered on July 17 abandoned in Pine Bluff, about 80 miles from the shopping center.
The alleged killers attempted to destroy any possible evidence located inside the vehicle by setting it on fire, according to People.
Tacori Mackrell (left) and Robert Lee Smith
The two teens are being held in the Faulkner County Detention Center without bond and are expected to to appear in court later this week.
