Husband, stepdaughter arrested for murder of Baltimore woman they said was killed by panhandler

BALTIMORE, Md. (WGHP) -- A man who claimed his wife was stabbed in the chest after rolling down a window to give money to a panhandler has been arrested in her death.

WBAL reported that police now believe the death of 52-year-old Jacquelyn Smith was staged by her family.

Keith Smith, the victim's husband, and his daughter, Valeria Smith, were arrested Sunday and charged with first-degree murder.

Jacquelyn Smith died Dec. 1 of last year. The original story, which police now say is false, was that she was driving through a Baltimore neighborhood with her family at 12:30 a.m. when she rolled down her window to give money to a panhandler.

“The information and the evidence points to it was not a panhandler,” said Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison. “People took advantage of Baltimore.”