Orlando police arrested Dale Smith Jr., 55, on Wednesday and charged him with second-degree murder in connection with the 2011 disappearance of Michelle Parker, his former fiancée. Parker’s body has not been found. Police said evidence points to Smith as responsible for her death; the charge is an allegation, not a finding of guilt.
Parker was last seen on Nov. 17, 2011, after dropping off her and Smith’s twins with him, according to the report. That afternoon, a prerecorded episode of “The People’s Court” featuring the former couple’s dispute over a $5,000 engagement ring aired. The broadcast is part of the case’s public history, but the supplied account does not establish that it was connected to Parker’s disappearance.
During the court-show dispute, Parker described Smith as capable of being “malicious and vindictive,” and said he wanted the ring back. Friends had previously characterized the relationship as tumultuous, the report said. These descriptions provide background but do not establish who committed a crime.
Parker was reported missing after she did not arrive at work. Her brother, Dustin, texted asking where she was and received the one-word reply “Waterford.” The family reportedly found the response unusual because they did not expect Parker to answer that way.
Several days later, Parker’s Hummer was found abandoned near an apartment complex west of the Mall at Millenia in Orlando. The decal advertising her airbrush-tanning business had been removed, according to the report. A dive team later located her iPhone in a lake about four miles from her home. The supplied material does not state what investigators found on the phone or explain the significance of the missing decal.
Police had regarded Smith as a prime suspect for years but previously did not have sufficient evidence to make an arrest, the report said. Investigators attributed the eventual arrest to years of work and a more focused effort during the preceding year. Police also said an expanded team revisited evidence and used advances in digital forensics. The account does not provide specific forensic findings or describe the evidence underlying the charge.
At a Wednesday news conference, Detective Phil McMickin said Smith had been interviewed repeatedly. McMickin said investigators asked him specific questions over the years and that Smith gave different answers to those questions on different occasions. The supplied report does not include Smith’s explanation for those differences or a detailed account of the interviews.
The arrest marks a significant development in a case that had remained unresolved since Parker vanished in 2011. The report said Fox News Digital had contacted Smith’s defense attorney, but it did not include a response. The allegations will be addressed through the criminal process, and Parker’s body remains missing.
