Losing a Detroit Angel: The Murder of Little Mariah Smith

On Burlingame St. in Detroit, MI one week ago today, a little girl named Mariah Smith was taken from her aunts home in the middle of the night. The little girl was only 5 years-old. When her family awoke to see her missing with they went into a panic. They called police and began the search for the small child. Mariah's mother Konesha stated that, "The way I'm looking at it is, someone climbed through the window and took my daughter."

When this nightmare began, the mother and family believed it may have been due to an argument with a man at the store near their home. But, after further investigation they realized the situation was far worse than they expected.

On the same morning that little Mariah Smith went missing there was a fire inside of an abandoned house on Waverly St. a few blocks away from where she was taken. Inside the the burned house was the body of a unrecognizable little girl on top of a burned mattress. The family refused to believe it was their loved one and continued to search high and low to find the missing child.

After finding the badly burned body of the little girl, the police began an investigation to search the house for clues. They found a scrap of fabric that looked to match what little Mariah was wearing when she disappeared. Still, the family kept hope.

Upon finding the body of the burned little girl, they proceeded to run DNA tests on the body to determine if the burned little girl was in fact Mariah Smith. It took almost a week, but the results were revealed two days ago that the little girl found inside the burned house was little Mariah Smith. The family was devastated. They hoped that would not be the case, but unfortunately it was.

At a gas station not to far from the area of the burned house, an attendant stated that a man came in a little before the house was burned and bought about 50 cent worth of gas. The police have confiscated the surveillance tape to get a look at the suspect. Clips form the tape have been broadcast on local Metro Detroit TV stations with hopes of someone recognizing him. The man is described as being a black man around 5' 9", brown skinned, and average to slim weight.

There was a candle light vigil held a few days ago for the murdered child. The house where little Mariah Smith was found is now a memorial for her remembrance. Detroiters have have shown their compassion by visiting the house to pay their respects.

The owner of Pye Funeral Home has offered his services free of charge to the mother of little Mariah Smith. The investigation is ongoing and police are actively searching for the murderer of that beautiful little angel. This story hits close to home. I have a little girl and I couldn't imagine her being taken from my home in the middle of the night and being killed. I fight to hold back the tears for Mariah Smith and her family. They are definitely in my prayers.