The Greenville Police Department has made three arrests in a six-year-old homicide cold case.
On January 25, 2015, 16-year-old Cobey Smith heard his name being called in the woods on Clark Street. When he went into the woods towards the voices, he was murdered. Today GPD Chief Howie Thompson announced they have arrested the men responsible for his murder.
Jayveon Deonte Sanders, Tyleek Rayquan Johnson, and Christopher Lewis Dendy, Jr., have all been charged with Smith's murder and subsequently denied bond.
Captain Greg Smith of the Criminal Investigations Division reported Lieutenant Tim Conroy approached him with the Smith case last year and said he believed it to be solvable.
A team was gathered and work began on the cold case in earnest with the help of the evidence from the initial investigation and the tireless efforts of Smith's mother, Betty Smith, and Jack Logan of Put Down the Guns Now Young People.
Conroy said the immediate response in 2015 and the massive case file compiled in that initial investigation helped significantly. He further said Betty Smith has worked diligently for six years to bring her son's killers to justice and frequently checked in with the police about updates on the case. Conroy said that made him all the more pleased to tell her they had found those responsible for her son's murder.
"The biggest honor any investigator can have is giving closure to the family of a victim," Conroy said.
The GPD is currently investigating 16 cold cases. Anyone with information on cold cases can contact them at 864-467-5342 or through CrimeStoppers at 23-CRIME.