LAWTON — A federal criminal complaint filed last week accuses a Lawton man of beating a Native American woman to death in her home in Lawton, then dumping her body near Medicine Park.
The body of Karon “Dinkers” Conneywerdy Smith, 68, was found a few feet from Oklahoma Highway 49 inside the east entrance to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge the afternoon of May 17.
The victim “appeared to have suffered bludgeon wounds to her face and head,” FBI Special Agent Jesse M. Stoda wrote in an affidavit filed May 21 in Western District federal court in Oklahoma City.
Investigators searched Smith’s home on May 19 and “observed blood consistent with a violent struggle,” Stoda reported.
Karon Conneywerdy Smith, a 1972 graduate of Lawton High School, was an enrolled tribal member of the Comanche Nation. Her home in Lawton is on land in the Western District of Oklahoma that is held in trust under jurisdiction of the federal government and thus is considered “Indian country,” Stoda wrote. And that makes her murder a federal offense.
Smith’s car was observed being driven south of Dallas on May 21, Stoda said. Law enforcement officers attempted to effect a traffic stop but the driver “attempted to flee at a high speed,” Stoda wrote. The vehicle was pursued until it crashed into a lake.
The occupants of the vehicle – identified as Tevin Terrell Semien, 28, and his girlfriend, who at the moment is charged with only a misdemeanor – attempted to escape on foot but were caught and taken into custody.
Later that day Semien waived his constitutional Miranda right to remain silent and have a lawyer present “and agreed to answer questions.”
At first Semien denied any involvement in the death, but “eventually admitted” that he killed the woman, Stoda wrote.
The suspect told investigators that his girlfriend and the victim were relatives, and his girlfriend asked him to kill Smith because she was angry with her (although the reason was not explained in the affidavit). His girlfriend persisted in her request, Semien said, so he “eventually agreed to kill” Smith.
Stoda said Semien told investigators he went to Smith’s home, beat her to death with a brick, stuffed her body in the trunk of her car, and deposited her body in the wildlife refuge.
According to a press release issued the day the body was found, Smith was approximately 4 feet, 11 inches tall and weighed about 90 pounds. Semien’s arrest record lists him at 6 feet, 3 inches tall and weighing 215 pounds.
Semien and his girlfriend initially were incarcerated in the Navarro County Jail in Texas, awaiting transfer to Oklahoma. Semien was held on a federal charge of first-degree premeditated murder. The female was charged with evading arrest; it was not immediately known whether she also would be charged with murder.
Semien pleaded guilty in Comanche County District Court last December to a felony charge of conspiracy to commit burglary. He received a five-year suspended sentence and a $500 fine.
Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Day was observed May 5
Ironically, Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day was observed nationally on May 5.
“Responding to the unacceptable levels of violence that have led to the crisis of missing or murdered Indigenous persons is a priority of the U.S. Department of Justice every day,” the agency declared.
A year ago U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco joined Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland to launch a joint commission whose mission is to reduce violence against American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Justice Department representatives on the commission have participated in the commission’s field hearings, which will continue through the summer. Later this year, the commission will deliver recommendations for addressing the MMIP crisis to the Attorney General and the Secretary.
“Acknowledging the many American Indian and Alaska Native people who have suffered, and continue to suffer, from the pain of a missing loved one or of violent crime serves as an important reminder of the urgency and importance of the department’s work,” Monaco said. “The Justice Department remains steadfast in our pledge to work as partners with Tribal governments in preventing and responding to the violence that has disproportionately harmed Tribal communities.”
“Crime in Indian Country – particularly when it involves violent crime, domestic violence, kidnapping, abduction, or murder – is best addressed with swift and effective action through a coordinated law enforcement response,” said U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester from the Western District of Oklahoma. “These cases and investigations are a priority for my office, and we remain committed to work with our local, state, tribal and federal law enforcement partners agencies to resolve jurisdictional complexities and coordinate efforts so that criminal offenders are held accountable, and victims receive justice.”