In the autumn of 2020, a life was tragically cut short in Kingsport, Tennessee. Eduardo Oviedo-Velazco, a 26-year-old Hispanic male, was found deceased on November 15, 2020. He had been fatally shot inside a residence on Osage Drive, prompting the Kingsport Police Department to launch a homicide investigation.
As detectives delved into the circumstances surrounding Oviedo-Velazco's death, their investigation led them to identify two individuals as suspects.
The first to be apprehended was Jonathan L. Smith, 28, of Kingsport. Smith was taken into custody following a traffic stop and was subsequently charged with a string of serious offenses: first-degree murder, felony murder, attempted first-degree murder, and aggravated burglary.
The search for the second suspect continued until August of 2022. Lekendrick D. Malone, 24, of Trenton, Tennessee, was located and arrested in Knoxville by the U.S. Marshals Service Smoky Mountain Fugitive Task Force. He faced the same charges as Smith in connection with Oviedo-Velazco's murder. Malone was held on a $250,000 bond. Following their arrests, both Jonathan L. Smith and Lekendrick D. Malone were indicted by a grand jury as the investigation into the death of Eduardo Oviedo-Velazco continued.
