Walter Moonie Porter, Murder-for-Hire, LA 2010

Christopher “Tiger” Smith was found sprawled in the doorway of his Gretna apartment at 8:10 p.m. on November 21, 2010, riddled with at least twenty gunshot wounds. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office arrived to a scene of cold execution—no signs of struggle, just blood and silence. Smith, a known figure in local street circles, had been targeted in a $20,000 murder-for-hire plot that would take six years to unravel.

Walter Porter, a/k/a “Moonie,” a/k/a “Urkel,” a 40-year-old New Orleans man, was sentenced today to life in federal prison for his role in the hit. A jury had already convicted Porter on March 9, 2016, on charges of using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire, causing death through the use of a firearm, and conspiracy to possess firearms. The verdict closed a chapter on one of the region’s most brazen contract killings.

U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance handed down life sentences on Counts 2 and 3—conspiracy to use interstate commerce facilities in murder-for-hire and causing death via firearm—and imposed 240 months, the statutory maximum, on Count 4 for firearm conspiracy. All sentences run concurrently. The judgment also aligns with Porter’s prior life sentence handed down on November 9, 2016, for his ties to the Hankton gang, a violent New Orleans organization long entrenched in drug trafficking and murder.

Court documents reveal that Nemessis Bates orchestrated the hit, paying co-defendants Porter and Aaron Smith, a/k/a “Beadie,” a/k/a “Beedie,” $20,000 to execute Christopher Smith. The motive, rooted in gang power struggles and street-level retaliation, underscores the brutal economics of contract violence in the region. Aaron Smith has already pled guilty and awaits sentencing; Bates was previously sentenced to life in prison.

The FBI and Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office led a grinding, multi-year investigation that peeled back layers of gang loyalty and coded street talk to deliver justice. Wiretaps, witness testimony, and forensic evidence tied Porter directly to the planning and execution of the murder. Prosecutors argued he wasn’t just a participant—he was a triggerman with a price on his soul.

U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite commended the relentless work of federal and local investigators. “This sentence sends a clear message,” Polite said. “Contract killers and gang enforcers will be hunted down and buried behind bars.” Assistant U.S. Attorneys Liz Privitera and Greg Kennedy led the prosecution, sealing Porter’s fate in a courtroom where the echoes of gunfire still lingered.