Tyrone N. Samuel, 50, of Heathsville, Northumberland County, Virginia, United States has been arrested. He is accused of kidnapping Ahrea’l Smith, 28, of Northumberland County.

Smith works as a clerk at the Claraville Little Sue Food Store in Heathsville. Surveillance footage showed her walking out of the store to start her car at around 9:05 p.m. on January 12, 2022, which was minutes after the end of her shift at work.

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At around 9:18 p.m., Smith got into another car, got back out and went back into the store. She locked the store and took a bag of trash towards the dumpsters on the east side of the store.

After that, Smith was not seen on camera again. She was wearing a black Nike hoodie, blue jeans and brown Ugg boots.

On the morning of January 13, 2022, Smith’s car parked outside the store was still running, according to the store’s day-shift clerk. A K-9 unit used by the Virginia State Police caught a trail that led from the store to Walnut Point Road in Heathsville for about 100 yards before it ended.

On January 15, 2022, Samuel was arrested in connection with Smith’s disappearance. Details about his involvement in the case were not immediately released.

Meanwhile, Smith is still missing. A charity called Youth Empowerment Strategies offered $6,400 in addition to the $2,000 reward from her family and a $1,000 reward from her employer Little Sue Corp for information that leads Northumberland County Sheriff’s deputies to her location.

Smith is 5’8″ tall and weighs around 170lbs. She has several tattoos including a rose on her right thigh.

Anyone with information about Ahreal Smith‘s whereabouts is asked to call the Northumberland County Sheriff’s Office at 804-580-5221.