Second suspect charged in case involving Crittenden County man’s death

Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Feb. 12, 2025 – Another suspect has been charged with homicide in the case involving the death of a Crittenden County man in late January.

While standing before District Judge Tommy Fowler on Wednesday, the suspect, 26-year-old Christopher Smith of Trumann, was charged with one count of homicide – murder – 1st degree. This is a Class Y felony and carries up to 10 to 40 years, or life, in state prison.

According to the probable cause affidavit, the Jonesboro Police Department received a phone call about an unresponsive person in the parking lot of 111 Daybreak Drive on Jan. 31 at 10:07 p.m. Officers found the victim with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to his face. He was pronounced dead on scene and later identified as 24-year-old Derrick Johnson.

Detectives discovered Johnson had been riding around in a gray car with Smith and 24-year-old Terry Wofford. Around 8 p.m., they left a residence on Henry Street and said they were heading to Trumann, according to the affidavit. Wofford was charged with homicide on Feb. 5 and given a $2.5 million cash or surety bond.

There was a large amount of blood on the front driver’s side of the vehicle, where Johnson would have been sitting. Detectives also found two shell casings in the front passenger seat, the affidavit said.

According to the affidavit, Smith ran out of the apartment complex on Daybreak Drive and headed to Church Street at 9:46 p.m. He was later picked up by another person and taken back to the residence on Henry Street.

Once back at Henry Street, Smith was sitting with his head in his hands, making statements that he was “going back to prison for this,” the affidavit said. Since then, Smith reportedly avoided all contact with law enforcement.

A bench warrant was issued for Smith on Feb. 3, and he turned himself in at the Paducah Police Department, which is in Kentucky. He was booked in the Craighead County Detention Center Feb. 10 at 7:41 a.m., according to online jail records.

On Feb. 4, officers conducted another interview with Smith, who said he and Wofford were the only people in the car with Johnson and that immediately after they parked the vehicle on Daybreak Drive, Wofford shot Johnson. Additionally, Smith said he thought Wofford used his gun to shoot the victim.

Smith was given a $1 million cash or surety bond. Conditions of the bond include a no-contact order and wearing a GPS ankle monitor. His next court date is March 20.