Suspect told caller to ‘look in the Christmas tree box’ after fatal shooting
A Grandview man is facing a second-degree murder charge after allegedly shooting a man at a Grandview townhouse in 2024, according to Jackson County court documents.
Steffon Smith faces one count each of second-degree murder and armed criminal action stemming from an incident on July 5, 2024, according to court documents. A second person has been charged with tampering with evidence in relation to the incident.
Grandview police were dispatched to the townhouse complex around 8 a.m. on July 6, 2024, according to a probable cause statement in support of Smith’s arrest.
There, they found a man lying on the ground; he had been shot twice, according to the probable cause statement. The man was lying between a white Ford Fusion with a temporary tag and a gray Jeep Renegade, both backed into parking spaces.
There were bullet holes in the Ford Fusion — the victim’s vehicle — through the rear passenger-side window, and blood spatters on the rear passenger door, according to the probable cause statement.
The man was declared dead at the scene, according to the probable cause statement. His name was redacted from the statement.
A “Rick and Morty” baseball cap and a plastic bag filled with a substance thought to be marijuana were found next to the dead man.
DNA found on the baseball cap matched Smith’s, and the man’s phone was shown to be in the area during the homicide and leaving shortly after, according to the probable cause statement.
After months of surveillance on Smith’s residence, he was taken into custody on April 18, 2025, according to the probable cause statement.
In an interview with police, Smith told investigators that he was at home on July 4 and July 5, 2024, according to the probable cause statement.
Investigators showed Smith images of the baseball cap and asked him if he remembered the hat, according to the probable cause statement. Smith told investigators, “I’ve had a lot of hats, yeah and no.”
Smith told investigators he couldn’t “say 100%,” and that “it’s been a while,” according to court documents. He told officers he was “trying to remember the hat.”
Detectives noticed that Smith began to drink water that he had initially refused at the start of the interview, and was “at a loss for words,” according to the probable cause statement.
When officers told Smith they found his DNA on the hat, Smith began to take “slower and deeper breaths,” according to the probable cause statement. He told investigators he “could have been passing through the area [July 5] going back home.”
Officers told Smith he could share his side of the story and “show if he has any remorse,” according to the probable cause statement. Smith said he didn’t have remorse for something he didn’t do.
Smith then leaned against the wall and said, “I wish I spent enough time with my kids,” according to the probable cause statement.
Smith later called someone from the Jackson County Jail, telling them to “go look in the Christmas tree box” in his home, according to the probable cause statement. On the phone, rummaging could be heard before Smith said, “Is it gone?”
Smith then alluded to items remaining in the residence, according to the probable cause statement. In another call, he discussed getting rid of “the real BB gun.”
In a second phone call, Smith indicated that he couldn’t be in jail for the rest of his life, according to the probable cause statement. He said he “probably might go that route that I always talked about.”
When police executed a search warrant at Smith’s residence, a second person was taken into custody for allegedly tampering with evidence, according to the probable cause statement. The person sold a gun that was in the Christmas tree box, but it did not match the weapon used in the crime.
No further court dates are set in Smith’s case.
