In late March of 2021, the life of 21-year-old Dianna LaSha Brice, a young mother from Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, who was also known as 'Nana Baby,' came to a tragic and violent end. Brice, who was 14 weeks pregnant with her second child, was last seen on March 30, 2021. On that day, she had gone with her boyfriend, Justin Smith, to a laundromat in Yeadon.
Later that day, after her family was unable to reach her, they contacted Smith, who claimed he and Brice had an argument and that she had gotten out of his car in West Philadelphia. This was the last time anyone in her family had contact with her.
Concerns for Brice's safety grew when Smith's car was found abandoned and engulfed in flames in Southwest Philadelphia just hours after she was last seen. A week-long search for the missing mother ended in heartbreak on April 5, 2021, when her body was discovered in a wooded area in Southwest Philadelphia, about a mile from where the burned-out vehicle had been located. An autopsy later revealed that Dianna Brice had been shot multiple times in the head. The investigation into her death was immediately classified as a homicide.
Authorities quickly identified Justin Smith as the primary suspect in the murder of his pregnant girlfriend. An arrest warrant was issued for him in April 2021, but by then, Smith had already fled the area. The investigation also uncovered the involvement of an accomplice, Tylydiah Garnett. Surveillance footage showed Garnett assisting Smith with the disposal of Brice's body. Garnett was arrested in Florida and subsequently pleaded guilty to arson, abuse of a corpse, and hindering apprehension. In September 2023, she was sentenced to 11 to 23 months in prison, telling the court that she had helped Smith out of fear for her own life and the lives of her loved ones.
For nearly four years, Justin Smith remained a fugitive from justice, with the FBI offering a reward for information leading to his capture. His time on the run came to an end in March 2025, when he was arrested in Atlanta, Georgia, following a traffic stop and a brief foot chase. Smith was extradited back to Philadelphia to face charges for the murder of Dianna Brice and her unborn child. In May 2025, he appeared in a Philadelphia courtroom for the first time, where he waived his right to a preliminary hearing. The case against him is ongoing.
