Latest / Murder Files Unsealed / Who killed 6-year-old Chance Smith in Stanly County?

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Who killed 6-year-old Chance Smith in Stanly County? · Murder Files Unsealed

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  Speaker 1: Welcome back everybody. Today, we're gonna dive into a case
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  that's been haunting a small town for over two decades.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, we're heading to Locus, North Carolina. That's great to
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  try and untangle the mystery surrounding the death of six
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  year old Chance Smith back.
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  Speaker 1: In December of two thousand and three.
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  Speaker 2: It's a case that really highlights how a seemingly simple
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  situation can spiral into a web of unanswered questions exactly.
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  Speaker 1: We've got news articles that detail the events, or at
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  least what we know of them.
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  Speaker 2: Right, and we're gonna try and piece together those events.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, understand the conflicting theories, and hopefully shed some light
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  on this case, even after twenty two years.
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  Speaker 2: It's a long time, it is, and.
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  Speaker 1: You know this case, it's especially heart wrenching. Definitely a
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  young boy, just six years old. So we're gonna approach
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  it with the sensitivity and respect it deserves. But before
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  we get into the details of chances disappearance, let's paint
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  a picture of him.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, let's get to know him a little, right.
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  Speaker 1: His mother described him as a typical six year old.
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  Speaker 2: Full of energy, loved his hot wheels, and his older
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  brother actually He mentioned that Chance was incredibly outgoing. He
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  could strike up a conversation with anyone. It sounds like
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  he brought a lot of joy to those around him.
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  Speaker 1: It does, which makes what happened all the more tragic.
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  It was Saturday, December thirteenth, when Chance's mom dropped him
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  off at his grandfather's place, Randall Lane. Seems like a
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  fairly regular occurrence.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, But what's interesting is that Chance was unusually hesitant
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  to stay at his grandfather's that day, almost.
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  Speaker 1: Like he had a premonition, which I mean, thinking about
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  that is just it's heartbreaking. His mother even had to
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  encourage him to get out of the car. Right later
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  that afternoon, Chance was seen entering the woods with a
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  dog and some friends, just like something out of a nightmare.
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  One minute he's there, the next he's vanished.
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  Speaker 2: And then this massive search effort.
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  Speaker 1: Kicks off right over one hundred and fifty.
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  Speaker 2: People, multiple agencies, volunteers, the whole nine yards.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, they even had to relocate the command post because
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  so many people showed up to help. Can really sense
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  the community's desperate hope to find Chance safe and sound.
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  And late that night, Chance's body was found in a.
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  Speaker 2: Pasture initial assumption was fueled by the grandfather's statement about
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  a possible horse incident. It seemed like Chance might have
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  been injured. Yeah, while seeking shelter from the.
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  Speaker 1: Cold, makes sense, right, tragic accident, you.
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  Speaker 2: Would think so. Yeah, But then the autopsy results came
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  in and everything changed.
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  Speaker 1: Instead of an accident, the autopsy revealed blunt force trauma.
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  Speaker 2: To the head, shifting the entire case from an accidental
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  death to a homicide investigation.
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  Speaker 1: And here's where the details get even more perplexing. The
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  fact that there was no blood found at the scene
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  where Chance's body was discovered raises serious questions.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, with a head injury that severe, there should have
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  been a significant amount of blood.
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  Speaker 1: So if Chance wasn't killed in that pasture, where did
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  it happen? And who changed his clothes? It points to
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  someone trying to conceal the truth to hide their involvement
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  in his death.
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  Speaker 2: This is where the focus of the investigation shifted towards
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  Chance's grandfather, Randall Lane. Shortly after Chance's death, Lane moved
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  to Tennessee and was wanted for questioning as a material witness. Essentially,
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  this meant that investigators believe he possessed information that was
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  crucial to the.
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  Speaker 1: Investigation, so they bring him back for questioning.
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  Speaker 2: The former police chief actually drove down to Tennessee himself
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  to bring Lane back, and what happened well. During that
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  car ride, Lane strongly implied that he knew who killed Chance.
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  He even suggested that he had considered taking matters into
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  his own hands, almost hinting of vigilantism.
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  Speaker 1: But he never revealed a name.
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  Speaker 2: No, he instead shared these cryptic comments about Chance, sometimes
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  speaking to him. It's eerie, it really is. The former
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  police chief was convinced that Lane was withholding crucial information,
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  perhaps out of fear or loyalty to someone else. He
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  might have confided in another person, but so far no
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  one has come forward.
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  Speaker 1: So we have this young boy brutally killed, a grandfather
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  who hints at knowing the truth but remains silent, and
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  a family obviously desperate for answers.
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  Speaker 2: Right, And it's just fascinating how despite the passage of time,
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  this case still has the power to grip us.
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  Speaker 1: It's a puzzle where the pieces just don't seem.
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  Speaker 2: To fit exactly, and that's why we're here. We're going
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  to try and connect those dots, examine the evidence and
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  see if we can find some answers for Chance in
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  his family.
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  Speaker 1: Exactly, we'll dive deeper into the potential suspects, analyze the
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  prevailing theories, and explore any glimmers of hope for justice
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  in this seemingly unsolvable case.
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  Speaker 2: Stay with us, We're just getting started. You know, one
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  thing that really stands out in this case is the
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  lack of blood at the scene where Chance's body was found, right,
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  and the fact that his clothes were changed.
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  Speaker 1: So what does that tell us.
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  Speaker 2: Well, it suggests as someone was trying to, you know,
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  deliberately mislead the investigators, Okay, by moving his body and
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  changing his clothes. You know, they were trying to erase evidence,
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  create a false.
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  Speaker 1: Narrative, a staged crime scene basically. So if the pasture
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  wasn't the actual crime scene, where did the murder actually
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  take place?
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  Speaker 2: That's the million dollar question, isn't it It is It's
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  possible that Chance was killed somewhere else entirely, and then
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  his body was moved to the pasture later.
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  Speaker 1: That makes the grandfather's initial statement about the horse incident
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  even more suspicious.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's possible he was trying to protect someone. Yeah,
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  maybe even himself by providing a plausible explanation for those injuries.
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  Speaker 1: Now we know that Lane was wanted for questioning as
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  a material witness. Can you explain what that means in
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  legal terms?
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  Speaker 2: Sure, a material witness is someone who possesses information that
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  is considered crucial to a legal case. Okay, So in
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  this instance, investigators believe that Laane had knowledge that could
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  potentially solve Chance's murder.
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  Speaker 1: So they believed that he knew something, but he never
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  He never gave up a name.
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  Speaker 2: He never did why. Well, you know, there are a
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  few possible explanations. Yeah, he might have been afraid of retaliation,
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  or you know, maybe he felt a misguided sense of
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  loyalty to the perpetrator. It's also possible that he was
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  trying to.
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  Speaker 1: Protect someone else, someone else in the family perhaps.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: Wow, the idea that someone so close to Chance might
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  be involved in his death.
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  Speaker 2: It's a tough pill to swallow, it is, And I
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  think that's why this case has resonated with so many
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  people for so long. Yeah, you know, it's a story
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  about a young life tragically cut short, a family left
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  searching for answers right, and a community haunted by this
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  unsolved mystery.
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  Speaker 1: We mentioned earlier that some family members believe they know
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  who killed Chance. Have they ever, you know, shared their
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  suspicions publicly?
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  Speaker 2: They haven't revealed any names publicly, but it's clear that
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  they believe someone within their circle, wow, is responsible for
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  Chance's death.
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  Speaker 1: That's got to be hard.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, absolutely, living with that ye carrying that weight? Yeah, definitely.
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  Speaker 1: Now shifting gears a bit, let's talk about the investigation itself. Okay,
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  were there any forensic breakthroughs or significant pieces of evidence
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  that could, you know, help shed light on the case.
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  Speaker 2: Unfortunately, the information available about the forensic investigation is pretty limited.
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  We know the autopsy revealed blunt force trauma to the head,
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  but details about you know, other potential evidence like DNA
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  or fingerprints haven't been disclosed publicly.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah. That lack of transparency is frustrating, isn't it. It
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  is for those seeking answers.
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  Speaker 2: Of course, the police department, you know, if they want
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  to protect the integrity of the investigation. Yeah, but it
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  creates a sort of void of information. Yeah, that just
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  fuels speculation, uncertainty.
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  Speaker 1: Speaking of the police department, what's their current stance on
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  the case.
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  Speaker 2: Well, the Loocus police department has stated that the case
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  remains open but inactive.
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  Speaker 1: Open but inactive, Yeah.
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  Speaker 2: And they declined to provide specific details about the investigation.
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  They say that they plan to review the case with
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  the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, so the SBI, what do they do? Exactly?
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  Speaker 2: So, the SBI is a state level law enforcement agency
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  and they often assist local police departments in complex cases
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  like this one.
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  Speaker 1: So they have more resources, more expertise.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, exactly, and you know they might be able to
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  bring new insights or investigative techniques. They could, you know,
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  reinvigorate this cold case.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, So that's a glimmer of hope. It is for
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  a Chances family, definitely, and everyone who's been following this
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  case absolutely.
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  Speaker 2: You know, it's a reminder that even after all these years,
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  justice is still possible.
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  Speaker 1: It is. It's frustrating, you know, we've gone through all
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  the details, the twists, the turns, the dead ends, and
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  we're left with more questions than answers.
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  Speaker 2: That's often the case with cold cases, unfortunately.
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  Speaker 1: But there's always hope, there is, right always.
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  Speaker 2: What gives you that hope, well, sometimes you know, all
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  it takes is that one new piece of evidence, one
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  person coming forward with what they know, and that can
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  crack a case wide open.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, and technology advances.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely what may have seemed insignificant years ago could hold
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  the key today.
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  Speaker 1: That's true.
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  Speaker 2: So you know, it's important to keep these cases in
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  the public.
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  Speaker 1: Eye, keep the conversation going.
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  Speaker 2: They exactly encourage anyone with information to come forward.
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  Speaker 1: Even the smallest detail could be that missing piece of
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  the puzzle.
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  Speaker 2: So if you're listening to this and you know anything,
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  anything at all, anything about what happened to Chance Smith
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  back in December of two thousand and three, please please
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  contact the Locust Police Department.
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  Speaker 1: Their number is seven o four eight eight eight four
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  seven four four.
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  Speaker 2: Write that down, share it.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, let's keep this case alive.
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  Speaker 2: Let's keep the pressure on and hopefully bring some peace
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  to Chance's family.
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  Speaker 1: Chance deserves justice.
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  Speaker 2: He does, His family deserves answers they do, and maybe,
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  just maybe someone out there has that piece of information
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  that can finally bring this case to a close.
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  Speaker 1: It's never too late to do the right thing.
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  Speaker 2: No, it's not.
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  Speaker 1: Come forward. You know, your voice, your memory could be
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  the key that's inviting that closure.
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  Speaker 2: This case really shows, you know, even in a small
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  town secrets can stay hidden for a long time.
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  Speaker 1: But the truth has a way of surfacing.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, eventually, let's all remember Chance and let's continue to
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  seek justice for him.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for joining us on this deep dive.
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  Speaker 2: Thanks for listening. Everybody,