Army Sgt. Christina Smith was stabbed to death on September 30, 2008 in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Sgt. Smith was stationed at Fort Bragg with her husband Richard Smith, also a soldier. After an investigation, Fayetteville authorities learned that Richard Smith hired Army soldier Matthew Kvapil to kill Christina. Richard Smith set up the murder by asking Christina to take a walk with him. Matthew Kvapil was hiding in the bushes waiting for the pre-planned moment to attack her. Both soldiers were arrested and charged with the first degree murder. Civilian prosecutors sought the death penalty for both soldiers in this case. In 2012, Richard Smith and Matthew Kvapil plead guilty to Christina’s murder and were sentenced to life in prison instead. Christina Smith’s death was the fourth murder involving military personnel in North Carolina in 2008. Pregnant Marine Maria Lauterbach disappeared from Camp Lejeune in 2007 and her remains were found in early 2008. She was murdered by fellow Camp Lejeune Marine Cesar Laurean. Fort Bragg Army Lt. Holley Wimunc was murdered by her Marine husband John Wimunc on July 19th. And pregnant Army soldier Megan Touma was murdered by her lover Edgar Patino, a married Fort Bragg soldier, on June 21st.

“In a way, it’s surprising that there aren’t more bodies piling up at military bases all over this nation” –The Fayetteville Observer (October 16, 2008)

In the News:

Steve Loehrke received Ohio’s first Military Sacrifice License Plate at the special license plate’s unveiling ceremony, June 9, 2015, at Ohio Department of Public Safety Headquarters, Columbus, OH. Steve is the proud father of fallen soldier Sgt. Christina E. Loehrke Smith and U.S. Boarder Patrol Agent Steven Loehrke. (June 21, 2015)

Related Links:
Army releases name of Fayetteville stabbing victim
Christina E. Loehrke Smith, Sergeant, US Army
Autopsy: Soldier fought attacker
Vigil highlights military women’s deaths
Fayetteville vigil to remember recent military murders
Soldier: Sgt. wanted wife slain
Suspect: Husband requested wife’s death several times
Husband of Slain Soldier Arrested in her Death
Husband arrested in soldier’s death; police find knife
Husband Held In Female Soldier’s Stabbing
Husband, 2nd man held in female soldier’s stabbing
Third female soldier killed; husband charged
Soldier’s Husband Charged with her Murder
Husband charged in N.C. soldier’s slaying
Fort Bragg soldiers appear in court on murder charges
‘My Daughter’s Dream Became a Nightmare’: The Murder of Military Women Continues
Murder of Military Women
The Fort Bragg Murders
Death on the Home Front
Prosecutors seek death for soldier accused in wife’s stabbing death
DA seeks death penalty in slaying of Fort Bragg soldier
2 Plead Guilty in Soldier’s Contract Murder
Two Sentenced for Fayetteville Murder for Hire Death
Former Army Soldiers Plead Guilty To 2008 Murder
Former Bragg soldiers get life in contract killing
Sentencing brings closure to friends, Family
Hundreds participate in Hero’s Ride to support military
Bill changes eligibility for Military Sacrifice license plate
New Ohio license plates honor service members who die outside of combat
New plate honors military who have died outside combat zone
Steve Loehrke receives first Ohio Military Sacrifice License Plate
Violent Crime, Non Combat Death & Suicide at Fort Bragg, North Carolina
What the DoD Doesn’t Want You to Know: 50 Shocking Military Homicides in the Last 30 Years
30 Domestic Abuse Cases in the Military That Ended in the Murder of Female Partners
House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel: Hearings on Domestic Violence in the Military (September 18, 2019)