True Crime Chronicles: Execution of OKC gang member in 2024 came 22 years after a senseless double homicide

Michael DeWayne Smith, a member of the Oak Grove Posse, a subset of the Crips gang in Oklahoma City, is currently on Oklahoma’s death row for the 2002 murders of Janet Moore and Sarath Pulluru.

The case, detailed in court records, stems from a series of retaliatory acts tied to a failed robbery attempt by Smith’s associates.

Little is publicly documented about Smith’s early life, but court records indicate his affiliation with the Oak Grove Posse, a gang operating in Oklahoma City.

Smith had close ties to Teron “T-Nok” Armstrong, a fellow gang member killed in November 2000 during an attempted robbery at Tran’s Food Mart. Smith was not involved in that robbery but became embroiled in subsequent events leading to his 2002 crimes.

Janet "Niecy" Moore

On February 2002, two days before the trial of two accomplices in the Tran’s Food Mart robbery, Smith committed two murders. First, he went to the apartment of Janet Moore, believing her son was a police informant.

Armed with a .357 revolver, Smith kicked in her door. When Moore screamed, he shot her to death. He then wiped down the apartment to eliminate fingerprint evidence.

Smith next targeted the A-Z Mart, a convenience store adjacent to Tran’s Food Mart. There, he shot and killed clerk Sarath Pulluru, emptying two pistols into him. He stole money from the register, used lighter fluid to set fires around the store, and burned Pulluru’s body to destroy evidence.

Court records state Smith’s actions were motivated by retaliation for Armstrong’s death and perceived disrespect from someone associated with the A-Z Mart conc, who erning the 2000 death of Armstrong.

A local television station has interviewed a different store clerk after the death of Armstrong, who was shot by the owner of the Tran Market. Smith mistook the clerk on television for Pulluru, who was working an extra shift to facilitate a co-worker's day off.

During the course of the investigation, when police asked Smith why he shot Pulluru so many times he callously replied "because he wouldn't die."

After the murders, Smith confessed to his roommate, stating he had killed Moore and “taken care of business” to avenge his “family.”

He also admitted the crimes to Sheena Johnson, who later informed police. Three days after his arrest on an unrelated matter,

Smith waived his Miranda rights and confessed to detectives, admitting the murders were retaliatory.

He detailed his efforts to eliminate evidence, including disposing of his clothes and setting fires. The confession was videotaped.

Janet Moore was a resident of Oklahoma City whose son Smith believed was cooperating with police. Sarath Pulluru was a clerk at the A-Z Mart, killed while working a late shift.

In 2003, Smith was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for both killings. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals upheld his convictions and sentences in 2007.

Smith pursued appeals, arguing issues related to his confession and trial for the nexy 14 years, but his death sentence was finally carried out on April 4, 2024 when he died by lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester.