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Minutes after he was shot during an argument in a Fort Worth motel parking lot on Feb. 10, Markell Smith collapsed and died near the entrance to room number 30.
The suspected shooter, 29-year-old Anthony Birdow, fled the parking lot on foot, according to an affidavit supporting a warrant for his arrest on suspicion of murder.
Birdow was arrested Tuesday afternoon, a month after police say he killed Smith.
On the night of the shooting, Birdow, a female witness and a third person were in the motel room together at the Central Motel at 5800 E. Lancaster Ave., when Smith came knocking on the door, the woman told police. Smith and Birdow began to argue inside the room and the dispute carried into the parking lot, the affidavit states.
After hearing a gunshot, one of the witnesses ran out of the room, where they saw Smith, 34, lying on the ground with a bullet wound to his chest, police wrote.
The female witness told police she had previously dated Birdow and was able to provide investigators with his full name, current address and social media profiles. The witness’ statement suggested the suspect and the victim argued about a woman, according to the affidavit.
Surveillance footage from the apartment parking lot shows Birdow shoving Smith and then shooting him “without provocation,” police wrote in the affidavit.
Detectives compared Birdow’s Facebook profile picture with previous booking photos and found that the account listed the same date of birth as previous records for him.
Birdow is being held in the Tarrant County Jail and bond has not been set as of Wednesday afternoon, according to online records.
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Lillie Davidson is a breaking news reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. She graduated from TCU in 2025 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, is fluent in Spanish, and can complete a crossword in five minutes.