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LA County Sheriff's Department
Gavin Smith, 57, a 20th Century Fox distribution executive is shown in this undated photograph released by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Smith has been missing since May 1, 2012.
The discovery of a Mercedes driven by a missing Fox executive when he disappeared 10 months ago has led police to reclassify the case as a homicide and link it to a drug dealer previously identified as a person of interest.
A black Mercedes Benz 420E registered to Gavin Smith was recovered at a storage facility in Simi Valley on Feb. 21, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department announced Thursday. Smith, 57, was last seen driving the car from a friend's home in the Oak Park area at the western end of Los Angeles on May 1 between 9 and 10 p.m.
Read more on NBCLosAngeles.com
His body has not been recovered, according to the department.
"Based on the vehicle's condition and information developed from persons cooperating in the investigation, homicide detectives are now investigating this case as a homicide," detectives said Thursday in a statement.
The storage facility has been linked to John Creech, who is currently in custody at Men's Central Jail on an unrelated narcotics conviction, detectives said.
Creech was previously named a person of interest in the case and his home was searched on June 8, 2012. Creech has not been charged in Smith's disappearance.
Anyone with information about the case was asked to call homicide detectives.
"They specifically want to know if anybody saw this Mercedes Benz go from Porter Ranch to Simi Valley around May 8, May 9," department spokesman Steve Whitmore said.
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Fox News? He was involved in some kind of drug deal? This is rich!
Guess he couldn't have been involved in some kind of Good Samaritan deal or ambushed by an acquaintance deal.
The scenarios without evidence that could be written are endless.
"20th Century Fox distribution executive" =/= Fox News. Not the same. Not even close.
John
The left wing HATERS are not smart enough to know the difference and so full of hate they don't care
Leftwing hollywood entertainment distribution dude out looking for lines. Looking for Right Wing gay hot date and found more than he could handle. The centralist haters like neither of your numbers.
Its risky business being a republican these days.
Careful! Those tanning booths can kill you.
So who was missing him? Sounds more like he headed to Tahiti to work on that gruesome tan. The fact he was a higher-up for FOX says nothing good about the guy at all...
So says an F'ing cat person. THAT says nothing good about anyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ya Jacka$$
I just want to know if that Fox dude was dealing with Greech and Chong.
Surely the DA can find some former cellmate who will claim Creech confessed to the murder if the right offer is made.
Hey this guy was from a real network. If he was from PMSNBC nobody would have noticed him missing.
Yes, you are correct. He was from the mainstream media.
He was from 20th Century Fox offices, not Fox News. Read the article!
You people need to stop poisoning the dialog. A man is missing & probably deceased, he was a fellow human being not John Wayne Gacy. Have a little tact and sensitivity
There's a "Miss Manners" in every crowd. Rogger--expert at getting cheap points the sanctimonious way....
Too easy to hate from a keyboard, plus most are looking to dump on anything to make themselves feel better.
Another article said he was involved with the drug dealer's wife. Not a good idea.
"20th Century Fox distribution executive" =/= Fox News. Not the same. Not even close.
ahem
drug dealers just do not kill random people..
there has to be some link that we are not privy to.
I am not for casting the first stone
but why is a drug dealer a person of interest?
seems they new or were know to each other
why do you ask well you cannot ask the dead guy
If you are clean you would have no contact with the drug dealer
this leads me to the point he did and knowingly did have contact
Drugs and Hollywood go hand in hand like peas and carrots. Dare to dream. The investigation needs leads, without smearing the beautiful image of Fox. Image is everything, mostly in that world.
It would be good if they could solve the crime, if any. And find the man's body for his family.
His prints inside the car? Carjacking? Time will tell.
Going to get his coke, the deal went bad.
Please tell me it was Roger Ailes....lmao .....Oh darn, it wasn't.
Fox Exec? Remind us again, why do we care? Did he leave outstanding debts at his tanning salon?