Wong pleads guilty in triple homicide
A young man from Springfield pleaded guilty to amended charges of second-degree murder for a heinous triple murder in the fall 2009 that stunned southwest Missouri.
Jacky Wong, 23, of Springfield, was originally charged with first-degree murder for the October 2009 deaths of Jeff and Glenda Smith and Zack Porter in Laclede County.
| Jeffry and Glenda Smith (facebook) |
Joshua Antonio Reyes, 25, was the ringleader in the triple murdersof his former girlfriend Miranda Smith’s 51 year-old father and 48 year-old stepmother and her boyfriend at the time, 25 year-old Porter. According to court records, there were supposed to be additional victims but the perps got lost trying to find their houses.
| Zack Porter (family photo) |
Reyes pleaded guilty to three counts of murder in May of 2010 and was sentenced to life without the possibility parole.
| Josh Reyes (l); Steven Pyykola (m) and Jacky Wong |
At the time of the murders, Laclede County Sheriff Richard Wrinkle said the motive was robbery and, “Jealousy……she took everything he loved away from him (Reyes), so he was going to take everything she loved away from her.”
| Benjamin Stidham (mug shot LCSO) |
Two other young men still face charges connected to the Smith – Porter murders. Benjamin Stidham, 19, of Springfield, is scheduled to stand trial in Camden County in December and Steven Pyykola’, 20, also of Springfield, case is set for trial in September of 2012 in Morgan County where the case was moved on a change of venue.
Wong is scheduled to be sentenced December 5th in Laclede County.
© 2012 The Ozarks Sentinel - The Leader in Ozarks News
Covering the Ozarks region with solid news content since 2005.
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