Albuquerque –
Jaremy Alexander Smith, 35, of Marion, South Carolina, has plead guilty to the 2024 kidnapping, carjacking and killing of Florence County EMS worker Phonesia Machado-Fore.
Evidence gathered during the investigation showed that Smith entered Machado-Fore’s Marion home on March 13, 2024, kidnapped her and took her to a remote area near Nichols. Machado-Fore was bound and blindfolded when Smith shot and killed her behind an abandoned house, according to the evidence.
When Machado-Fore’s body was found, she was wearing bedclothes and slippers. She was reportedly found lying face down with significant facial injuries and a dog shock collar was around her neck. Investigators also located cut plastic zip ties on the ground near her body. Her face was wrapped in “blood-soaked bandanas,” and plastic tape was around her face.
Smith then drove Machado-Fore’s vehicle back to her home, where he stole several firearms that he later sold. He then drove the stolen vehicle to New Mexico where the car broke down on the highway.
On March 15, 2024, in Quay County, New Mexico, Smith fatally shot New Mexico State Police Officer Justin Hare after Officer Hare stopped to assist him with a flat tire. Smith then stole Officer Hare’s police cruiser with the mortally wounded officer inside. Smith drove around for several minutes before dumping the Officer onto the side of a frontage road. At one point Jaremy Smith crashed into an embankment on a remote road and abandoned the police cruiser and fled on foot. Officers finally located their officer after an extensive search and they transported him to a nearby emergency room. Officer Hare died from his injuries at the hospital later that morning.
Law enforcement immediately launched a coordinated, multi-jurisdictional effort to locate Smith, whose name and photograph were widely distributed by news media.
On March 17, 2024, an attentive gas station employee in Albuquerque recognized Smith and alerted authorities. Deputies with the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office subsequently apprehended Smith in a nearby neighborhood.
Smith was sentenced to life in prison in April 2025 in the District of New Mexico for Ofc. Hare’s killing.
“The senseless murders of Ms. Machado-Fore and NMSP Officer Hare were shocking and heartbreaking,” said U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling for the District of South Carolina. “Now, thanks to a multi-state law enforcement investigation, Smith faces accountability for these two heinous acts. We offer our continued condolences to both families as they heal and remember their loved ones.”
“The defendant’s violent and horrific attacks on two first responders sent shockwaves throughout South Carolina and New Mexico,” said FBI Columbia Special Agent in Charge Anish Shukla. “While his acceptance of responsibility cannot bring back Ms. Machado‑Fore or Officer Hare, we truly hope their families and friends can start healing knowing that the defendant is being held fully accountable for his despicable actions.”
Smith faces a mandatory sentence of life in federal prison. He also could be fined up to $250,000 and ordered to pay restitution, followed by a period of supervised release.
U.S. District Judge Joseph Dawson III accepted Smith’s guilty plea. Dawson will sentence Smith after reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
The case in South Carolina was investigated by the FBI Columbia Field Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Everett McMillian and Christopher Lietzow are prosecuting the case with support from DOJ’s Capital Case Section Trial Attorneys Barry Disney, Julie Adams and Aria Merle.
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