Crime Solvers Central
Crime Solvers Central
302 Cases Solved. Advancing justice for missing persons, unsolved homicides, unidentified and unclaimed remains.

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Katie Smith was a 17-year-old white tourist from Detroit who was murdered in Nassau, Bahamas, on January 26, 1974. She was reportedly stabbed to death in a manner described as consistent with two other killings of American tourists in Nassau between December 1973 and January 1974.

The three victims were all American: 44-year-old Irwin Borstein, 50-year-old Paul Howell, and Katie Smith. Authorities later identified 19-year-old Michaiah Shobek, born James Michael Shoffner, as the suspect; he had moved to the Bahamas in late 1973 and was working as a handyman. Reports say Shobek had prior juvenile arrests and mental health issues and later claimed he received divine instructions to kill, referring to victims as angels of Lucifer.

Shobek was arrested in January 1974, confessed at trial, and was convicted and sentenced to death in May 1974. Anyone who knew Katie, her travels in Nassau, or has information about her final days is asked to come forward.