ATLANTA — An Atlanta federal prison inmate appeared to admit to his involvement in a murder case during a Facebook Live video taken inside the prison.
Joe Fletcher, 30, is from Akron, Ohio, but he is serving time in the Atlanta federal prison for a probation violation.
"I'm the king. I'm going to get a phone wherever I'm at," Fletcher said.
During a 49-minute video posted on Facebook Saturday, Fletcher talks about LaDonte Smith, 19, who was shot in the head in Akron in 2010.
Another man, Anthony Smart, pleaded guilty to the deadly shooting in 2011 and is serving a 17-year sentence.
Fletcher appeared to take responsibility for that shooting during the live broadcast, which has been viewed more than 8,000 times.
"Everybody knows I did it," he said.
Channel 2's Nicole Carr spoke to Smith's mother over the phone. She said someone emailed her the clip of Fletcher.
"What were you doing while you were watching this?" Carr asked.
"Crying, rewinding, thinking of things that I could do to him," Lashoane Andrus said.
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Andrus said she knew Fletcher long before he was behind bars in Atlanta. She said he and her son were friends, but she always believed there was more to the case.
"Had you ever found peace in Anthony Smart's plea?" Carr asked.
"No, because I was still hearing that he was not actually the one who pulled the trigger. He was paid to say he did it," Andrus said.
The mother said she wants her son's murder case reopened.
"I want Joe to be brought back to court," she said.
Summit County, Ohio prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh sent the following statement.
We are aware of the Facebook video posted by Mr. Fletcher. We are currently reviewing Fletcher's involvement with Anthony Smart in the murder of LaDonte Smith in 2010. We have reached out to LaDonte's family and discussed the situation with them. This is a difficult time for the family with memories from seven years ago resurfacing. Our goal has always been to bring them justice.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is investigating the incident and may forward the case to prosecutors based on its findings.
According to the prison website, Fletcher is set for a May release.