Sisters face sentencing for nightclub slaying of love rival
A pair of sisters from Indianapolis will be sentenced this week in connection with the nightclub shooting of a supposed romantic rival.
Arieal Smith, 25, was convicted in late September on charges of murder, pointing a firearm and carrying a handgun without a license in relation to the Feb. 25, 2022 death of Secoya Williams, FOX 59 reported.
Her sister, 29-year-old Ebonie Parks, was found guilty of assisting her sister in the commission of the heinous crime, the outlet added.
Smith is expected to receive 45 to 60 years behind bars at her sentencing on Thursday, while Parks faces a one- to three-year sentence at her Friday proceedings.
Williams had just turned 25 years old when she encountered Parks at Club Kalakutah, where she was watching a childhood friend perform a rap, FOX 59 explained, citing the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police.
Parks became angry when the rapper, her ex-boyfriend, supposedly started paying attention to Williams, the report continued.
The slighted woman called Smith and told her to bring a gun to the venue.
The situation devolved further when Smith tossed a drink in Williams’ face.
A guard then carried Smith outside of the bar, where she got into a black SUV, WTHR reported.
Williams approached the vehicle and started hitting the passenger side window, according to a security guard who witnessed the altercation.
Smith then opened the door and shot Williams in the stomach.
Parks’ ex tried to help Williams, but was deterred when Smith turned the firearm on him.
Multiple people told police at the scene that Parks was in the driver’s seat of the SUV at the time, WTHR said.
The sisters sped away, but were arrested three days later.
“I am glad we finally got Secoya justice,” Williams’ mother, Marilyn Johnson, told the Indianapolis Star of the guilty verdicts.
“My daughter did not pick fights with people. The evidence showed what we knew was true all this time. I felt relief.”
Johnson feels her daughter was “ambushed” by Smith and Parks, she added.
Club Kalakutah was shut down by state regulators earlier this year, the Indianapolis Star reported.
The Lafayette Square hotspot was tied to at least six shootings since 2020, the outlet noted.
