On March 12, 2020, the life of 21-year-old Leoncio Zavala Flores was tragically cut short. Known affectionately as "Layo" to his friends and family, he was a young man with a promising future. He had graduated from Clarendon High School in 2017 and pursued further education at both Southern Arkansas University Tech and Southeast Arkansas College. A dedicated worker, he had been employed at Highland Pallets in Pine Bluff before taking a position at Walmart in Stuttgart.
He was remembered for his love of cooking and the joy he found in spending time with his loved ones. He was born in Mapastepec, Mexico.
The events of that Thursday in March unfolded at an apartment complex located in the 2400 block of McConnell Circle in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Officers from the Pine Bluff Police Department were dispatched to the scene following a report of a shooting. Inside one of the apartments, they discovered Leoncio Zavala Flores unresponsive. He had sustained a fatal gunshot wound. The news of his violent death sent ripples through his community, leaving friends and family to mourn the loss of a man known for his outgoing personality and constant smile.
In the week that followed the tragic incident, investigators with the Pine Bluff Police Department worked to piece together the events that led to Flores's death. Their efforts led them to two suspects. On March 19, 2020, authorities arrested 18-year-old Karizma Fisher of Monticello and 18-year-old Keuntae Shelton of Pine Bluff. The two were taken into custody in connection with the homicide. Both Fisher and Shelton were subsequently booked into the Jefferson County Jail, facing serious charges of Capital Murder and Aggravated Robbery for their alleged roles in the death of Leoncio Zavala Flores.
