In a shocking turn of events, a memory card stolen by a convicted prostitute from a date's vehicle has become central evidence in a double-murder trial.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, was horrified to discover the card contained disturbing footage of a woman being brutally attacked and strangled. She handed the card over to the police a week later, according to court documents related to the trial of Brian Steven Smith, a 52-year-old newly naturalized U.S. citizen.
The memory card, ominously labeled "Homicide at Midtown Marriott," contained approximately 40 photographs and 12 videos of Kathleen Henry, a 30-year-old woman, being assaulted and strangled in 2019. The footage also showed her body being covertly transported out of an Anchorage hotel, concealed under a blanket on a luggage cart.
The chilling footage included the perpetrator stomping on Henry's throat, accompanied by the horrifying declaration, "You need to f--king die, bitch." The man in the video also chillingly stated, "In my movies, everybody always dies," and pondered aloud about the potential reaction of his followers to his actions.
The South African outlet IOL obtained charging documents that described additional images of Henry lying naked on a floor next to a bed. The man in the recording can be heard making comments such as "My hand's getting tired," before proceeding to stomp on Henry's throat.
Police identified the voice in the recording as that of Smith, a married South African native, from a previous investigation. Authorities believe the footage was recorded at the TownePlace Suites by Marriott in Anchorage, where Smith was registered as a guest from September 2 to 4, 2019.
The first images of Henry's body were timestamped around 1 a.m. on September 4, while Smith was still registered at the hotel. The final images, taken on September 6, showed Henry's body in the back of a black Ford Ranger pickup truck, similar to one owned by Smith. Smith's phone was also traced to the location where Henry's body was later discovered.
During interrogation about Henry's death, Smith reportedly confessed to the murder of another woman, Veronica Abouchuk, 52, and provided authorities with the location of her remains. District Attorney Brittany Dunlop recounted Smith's chilling words during a court hearing last week, "I'm going to make you famous."
Abouchuk had been reported missing by her family in February 2019, several months after they had last seen her. Like Henry, Abouchuk had experienced periods of homelessness. Alaska State Troopers had mistakenly identified another body as Abouchuk's in 2018, due to her ID being found with the remains. However, dental records later confirmed that the skull found at the location provided by Smith was indeed Abouchuk's.
Smith has pleaded not guilty to 14 charges, including first- and second-degree murder, sexual assault, and tampering with evidence. If convicted, he could face up to 99 years in prison. His attorney, Timothy Ayer, unsuccessfully attempted to exclude the memory card and its contents from the trial, arguing that the authenticity of the photos and videos could not be verified.
However, Third Judicial District Judge Kevin Saxby ruled that the woman who took the memory card could testify about her actions, and the recordings could be authenticated. The trial is set to commence on Monday with jury selection and is expected to last three to four weeks.
Smith moved to Alaska in 2014 and became a naturalized U.S. citizen in the same month that Henry was killed. His wife, Stephanie Bissland of Anchorage, and a sister acting as a family spokesperson in South Africa, have declined to comment until after the trial.
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