Marlo Akins murder of Patrick Smith

Marlo Akins shot and killed Patrick Smith, 39, during a late-night shooting inside a southwest Little Rock nightclub on June 20, 2020, then remained free on bond for more than a year before provoking a separate armed confrontation with Arkansas State Police.

Police said the homicide occurred around 12:30 a.m. at Club 428, located at 4726 Asher Avenue. Investigators identified Akins as a suspect the day after the shooting. He avoided arrest until July 3, 2020, when U.S. Marshals located and arrested him at an apartment on Summertree Drive in Little Rock. Prosecutors charged him with first-degree murder and felony possession of a firearm by certain persons.

While the murder case remained pending, Akins posted bond.

In the early morning hours of September 26, 2021, Akins fled from an Arkansas State Trooper during an attempted traffic stop near Interstate 30 and Geyer Springs Road. According to state police, the encounter escalated into a vehicle pursuit after Akins refused to stop and shoved a female passenger from the moving car. The woman, later identified as Jerika Presley, 31, told investigators she was not seriously injured.

During the pursuit, Akins opened fire on the pursuing trooper, aiming a gun from inside the vehicle. The chase ended when Akins abandoned the car at 35 Eaton Street in southwest Little Rock and fled on foot. State police said Akins and the trooper exchanged gunfire during the foot pursuit.

Multiple state police units converged on the area. Four hours later, officers took Akins into custody. Investigators recovered a 9-millimeter handgun equipped with a 50-round ammunition drum, which they said Akins used during the pursuit. Neither Akins nor the trooper suffered gunshot injuries.

Prosecutors charged Akins with aggravated assault, fleeing, possession of firearms by certain persons, and executing a terroristic act, all felonies. At the time of that incident, Akins was free on bond for the nightclub murder.

In June 2023, Akins, then 34, accepted a negotiated guilty plea to first-degree murder in the killing of Patrick Smith. Court records and reporting described Akins as a self-professed Little Rock Crips gang member and a habitual offender. The plea resolved the nightclub homicide and incorporated his prior criminal history.

The court sentenced Akins to 45 years in prison. He entered the Arkansas prison system on July 5, 2023, and is currently housed at the Cummins Unit. Akins, 37, has an earliest projected release date of July 31, 2052, when he will be in his mid-60s. This is his fifth incarceration.