A Bahamian man is wanted in the U.S. for questioning in the 2002 murder of 17-year-old Marissa Karp in South Florida.
Thirty-eight-year-old Almanto Coakley, who also goes by the alias Shawn Smith, was profiled on the popular crime show America’s Most Wanted on Friday, which airs on the Lifetime network.
According to the show, Coakley is also wanted for the murder of two other people by Sunrise Police.
It is reported that Coakley shot three people, two of whom he killed.
Coakley and Karp, who was his girlfriend, lived together at the time of her death.
The 17-year old, who was shot to death, is believed to have been killed in the apartment before her body was dumped and discovered several days later.
According to the Sun Sentinel, Karp’s body was discovered in a garbage bag under an Alligator Alley bridge in Collier County on August 19, 2002.
Ten years have passed and her murder has still not been solved.
America’s Most Wanted said Coakley was not wanted for Karp’s murder, but police believed he could provide them with answers about her death.
The Sun Sentinel said Karp’s family thought the 17-year old, whose mother had recently died, was struggling with the loss and she began to spend time with people who were thought to have been involved in drugs.
While police are unaware of Coakley’s whereabouts, it is believed he is in hiding in The Bahamas where he is said to have frequented Freeport and Nassau.
Coakley is described as 5′ 9” tall, weighing in at 140 to 150 pounds.
He has black hair, brown eyes and wears a mustache.
Coakley also has the name Latoya tattooed on his left forearm and a lion on his right arm.
In 2011, Broward County Crimestoppers offered a $10,000 reward for any information that would lead to an arrest in Karp’s unsolved murder.
Anyone with information on Coakley’s whereabouts is urged to call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477 or America’s Most Wanted at 800-274-6388.
By Cleopatra Murphy
The Nassau Guardian
