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Covington man convicted for killing two people in front of daughter
Gavel
Evan Newton
Published: Oct 31, 2024, 11:42 PM

NEWTON COUNTY — A Newton County jury has convicted a Covington man for killing two people in front of his own daughter.

Marques Smith, 35, was found guilty earlier this week for the murders of Craig and Desiree Thomas. Desiree and Smith had a teenage daughter from their previous relationship, according to a news release from the Newton County District Attorney’s Office.

The double murder happened on Sept. 11, 2022 when Desiree and Craig went to Smith’s home for a scheduled child custody exchange at 60 Pebble Lane. The news release stated that Smith then went to his vehicle and retrieved a firearm, shooting Craig and Desiree in front of his daughter.

Jack Redlinger from the Newton County Sheriff’s Office previously told The Covington News in a 2022 article that the couple tried to drive away but ultimately hit a mailbox. Craig was pronounced dead at the scene, while Desiree succumbed to her injuries in the ambulance while being transported.

While Smith originally went on the run following the incident, he agreed to turn himself in the next day and was booked in the Newton County jail.

The trial lasted approximately four days, with the jury delivering the guilty verdict in just under a half an hour, per the news release. Smith was formally convicted of two counts of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of possession of a firearm during a felony, cruelty to children in the first degree, two counts of cruelty to children in the third degree and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

According to jail records pulled from the 2022 article, Smith had a long criminal history dating back to 2005. This included an aggravated battery case which he was convicted in 2017 over in Rockdale County, which was used as evidence of prior physical violence toward Desiree.

The news release also mentioned that Smith told family members that the trial was “fun” and that he laughed when he saw a picture of his aforementioned 2017 case. He also told family members that he “missed his truck” that was in the video, and that “he enjoyed being the ‘guest of honor.’”

Smith remains in custody and his sentencing will take place at a later date.
Man convicted of killing wife sentenced to life without parole
Arrief McKenzie allegedly killed two different women on March 3, 2020, including his wife in Newton County
Arrief McKenzie
Arrief McKenzie (Photo courtesy of Gwinnett County Police Department)
Evan Newton
Published: Mar 25, 2025, 2:26 PM

NEWTON COUNTY – A Gwinnett County man will spend the rest of his life behind bars after murdering his wife.

Arrief McKenzie was sentenced on March 24 to life without parole plus 20 years for killing Niki McKenzie, a 51-year-old Covington woman who was married to Arrief. 

The sentencing comes one month after Arrief pled guilty to charges including malice murder, felony murder, burglary in the first degree, home invasion in the first degree, family violence aggravated assault, aggravated stalking and possession of a knife during the commission of a felony. While prosecutors originally sought the death penalty for these charges, the State withdrew its intent after Arrief pled guilty and waived his right to trial by jury.

According to a press release from the Newton County District Attorney’s (DA) Office, Arrief and Niki were estranged after Arrief pled guilty to family violence battery against Niki in 2019. As part of the 2019 sentencing, Arrief was to have no contact with Niki. This caused Arrief to move away from their residence in Newton County.

Arrief then moved to Gwinnett County where he began seeing 36-year-old Jillian Myles-Waters. In the early morning hours of March 3, 2020, Arrief entered Myles-Waters’ home and allegedly stabbed her seven times while at home with her two young twin boys. Myles-Waters died from her injuries.

Soon thereafter, prosecutors claimed Arrief fled to Newton County where he ambushed Niki as she was leaving to go to work. The press release states that Arrief stabbed and cut Niki 21 times with the same knife he used earlier in the day, leading to her death at the scene.

An officer pulled over Arrief on suspicion of driving under the influence in Dunwoody. The officer reportedly saw a “large amount of blood” on Arrief’s clothes and car. After removing opened beer bottles from the vehicle, officers spotted the knife.

With the Newton County Sheriff’s Office quickly issuing warrants for Arrief’s arrest following Niki’s murder, he was taken into custody where he faced the aforementioned charges.

According to the DA’s office, the court heard from a number of witnesses including some of Niki’s family members and former co-workers. The court also got to hear from one of Arrief’s family members as well as a psychologist on his behalf.

After a full day of testimony, the life without parole plus 20 year sentence was handed down.

The charges against Arrief are pending in Gwinnett County for the murder of Myles-Waters.

“I first want to thank Niki’s family for their everlasting support of their loved one,” said Newton County District Attorney Randy McGinley via a press release. “She raised amazing children who will push forward and do great things. While this conclusion will not undo what happened, the sentence will provide some level of justice for the family. But it also sends a strong message to our community that crimes like this will lead to the most severe consequences. I also want to thank the hard work of multiple agencies working together to bringing justice to Niki’s family.”