
The man seemed to be in every aisle that Smith had visited and appeared in almost every part of the footage showing her, but at a discreet distance. It also revealed that a male, who was white and in his early twenties, wearing a white shirt and dark shorts, had entered the store approximately thirty seconds after Smith had entered. The surveillance footage showed Smith parking her car, entering the store, calling her mother and selecting the items that were later found in the car. Target stores use a large array of video cameras, and these can often be enhanced internally through the company's Target Forensic Services division. Her purse, wallet and the items that she had bought were left in the car.

Approximately four hours later, her car, a 1987 Buick Regal, was found abandoned outside of Macy's in the parking lot of Oak Park Mall across the street. She then left the store before she disappeared. Her last call had been to her mother from the store. Surveillance video from Target showed Smith purchasing a present for her boyfriend to celebrate six months together. Police, other authorities and the national media launched an extensive publicity campaign and search for Smith. CST on June 2, 2007, in the parking lot of a Target store at 97th and Quivira, behind Oak Park Mall in Overland Park, Kansas.

The story was featured in the international media, including on America's Most Wanted, before her body was found near a lake in Missouri on June 6, 2007. Kelsey Ann Smith (– June 2, 2007) was an Overland Park, Kansas, teenager who disappeared on June 2, 2007, and was murdered that evening.
