Man charged with killing woman whose body was found near Goose Island

An East Garfield Park man has been charged with killing a woman whose body was found last summer with a bag over her head near Goose Island.

Kimberly Duncan, 54, was found dead July 5 near the 800 block of West Evergreen Avenue with a plastic bag over her head and duct tape over her mouth, according to authorities.

An autopsy the following day determined she had been beaten and stabbed, Cook county prosecutors said in court Tuesday, and her death was ruled a homicide.

Detectives were told that Duncan contacted 52-year-old Lamont Smith the day before her death about purchasing cocaine, prosecutors said. Investigators found surveillance footage of a gold Toyota 4Runner driving to and from the area where her body was found and later learned that the vehicle had been given to Smith to use on June 23.

Prosecutors also said Smith was driving the vehicle when it was pulled over for a traffic stop three days after Duncan’s body was found. Dried blood under the rear seats was later determined to be Duncan’s.

When Smith’s home was searched, detectives found “indications of blood in circular patterns consistent with cleaning” and blood on a mop and inside a bucket, according to prosecutors.

A search of Smith’s computer and phone confirmed Duncan’s arrangement to purchase the drugs from Smith and also revealed Smith had searched the internet for “body found in Chicago” on the day Duncan was discovered, but before she had been identified, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said Smith has previously been convicted of attempted murder and domestic battery. He was taken into custody Friday at his home and charged with first-degree murder, court records show.

An assistant public defender for Smith said he has been on disability the last two years and that he suffers from multiple medical issues.

Judge Sophia Atcherson denied Smith bail and set his next court date for Dec. 7.