Niece of alleged police killer knows where he is but isn't talking, prosecutor says

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The niece of a man wanted for allegedly killing his pregnant ex-girlfriend last month and an Orlando police sergeant on Monday faced serious allegations in Orange County court Thursday.

LaKensha Smith-Loyd was arrested Wednesday on allegations that she has been continually helping her uncle, Markeith Loyd, 41, avoid capture in connection with the homicides.

As she stood in front of a judge Thursday, the prosecutor in the case said that she believed Smith-Loyd could tell investigators where Loyd is but is not cooperating with law enforcement.

"I think it's reasonable to assert, as she stands here to date she knows where he is and has not furnished that information," the prosecutor told the court.

She is facing a charge of accessory after the fact to life felony, which is a second-degree felony, and was being held at the Orange County Jail in lieu of a $750,000 bond.

Orange County deputies said Smith-Loyd went to Texas Fried Chicken on Jan. 7 to pick up $200 to give to Loyd. He used to work at the restaurant.

Smith-Loyd was named in an arrest report for Zarghee Mayan, who is accused of helping Loyd, 41, hide after Sade Dixon was killed on Dec. 13.

Mayan is accused of driving Loyd around the night Dixon was killed and having contact with him up until Jan. 7, deputies said.

Mayan is being held on no bond.

She spoke to Channel 9 in December, urging her uncle to turn himself in.

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But deputies said Smith-Loyd knew where Loyd was after Dixon's death and would only turn him in if deputies would tell her if they found a gun at the scene, because she believed he was defending himself.

An arrest affidavit said Smith-Loyd called deputies with intimate knowledge of Dixon's shooting death that had not yet been released.

Deputies said she ultimately became uncooperative with the investigation.

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Loyd is accused of killing Orlando police Master Sgt. Debra Clayton Monday outside a Pine Hills-area Walmart.

A fullfledged, multi-agency manhunt has been underway since the shooting, but Loyd remains on the loose.

If Smith-Loyd had told investigators where her uncle was then, the officer would still be alive, the prosecutor argued.

Another woman was arrested Wednesday in connection with the search for Loyd after being questioned for nearly two hours, Channel 9 learned.

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Deputies said Jameis Slaughter, Loyd’s ex-girlfriend, was brought into custody Wednesday evening and was placed under arrest at about 8 p.m.

Slaughter kept in contact with Loyd after he went on the run last month, and her car was spotted circling the Walmart after Loyd shot and killed Clayton on Monday, deputies said.

She also faces a charge of being an accessory after the fact, as well as a charge of giving a false name, because she initially pretended to be her twin sister, investigators said.

She was being held in lieu of bonds totaling $505,000. %

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Cox Media Group