Edward Smith Jr. was a 37-year-old man from Aurora, Illinois, known by loved ones as the life of every party. A father to two children, Briciah and Sebastian, he had a passion for dancing and would footwork and belly roll on any occasion. Born in Chicago and raised in Bellwood, he loved his red Monte Carlo so much that he joined a car club, and he dreamed of one day buying a Harley-Davidson, which he called a "grown man bike."
In the early hours of December 18, 2021, that life was cut
short. Just after 3 a.m., Aurora police received a 911 call about a man down in the 400 block of Clark Street on the city's East Side. Officers arrived to find Edward suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Paramedics rushed him to Rush Copley Medical Center, but he was pronounced dead just after 9 a.m. The Kane County Coroner’s Office later confirmed his cause of death was consistent with gunshot wounds.
Investigators learned that Edward had met a woman at a bar earlier that evening and they had agreed to meet at his apartment, which was on the same block. Police determined the woman, Yecenia Granados, intended to rob him and had met up with a male companion, Michael James, to carry out the plan. At Edward's apartment, a physical struggle broke out between him and James, ending when James fatally shot him. The two then fled in their vehicle. Prosecutors would later describe Edward as an "entirely innocent victim completely unknown to them."
After months of diligent investigation, which included canvassing the neighborhood and collecting forensic evidence, the Aurora Police Department made two arrests in April 2022. Yecenia Granados, then 31, and Michael James, then 37, were both charged with first-degree murder, armed violence, and residential burglary. Police Chief Keith Cross thanked the community members who came forward with information that helped detectives build their case.
The legal proceedings brought accountability for both individuals. Yecenia Granados entered into a plea agreement, pleading guilty to a lesser charge of aggravated battery with a weapon in exchange for her testimony against James. As part of the deal, the first-degree murder charges against her were dismissed.
In May 2025, a jury convicted Michael James on nine counts of first-degree murder, one count of armed violence, and one count of residential burglary. Two months later, in July 2025, a judge sentenced him to a total of 125 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. The sentence consists of consecutive terms: 75 years for murder, which must be served in its entirety; 35 years for armed violence; and 15 years for residential burglary.
