Prosecutor in Rap Drug Case Slain

Dec. 4, 2003 -- A federal prosecutor was found shot and stabbed to death along a Pennsylvania road today after he failed to show up in court for the drug trial of a rap artist, officials said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan P. Luna, 38, was trying the case of Baltimore-based rapper Deon Lionnel Smith, 32, and his one-time associate Walter Oriley Poindexter, 28, who were accused of heroin distribution and running a violent drug ring, in part from their Stash House Records studio. Smith's attorney said both defendants entered guilty pleas today as part of a plea bargain.

Luna body was found alongside a road in Ephrata, a town near Lancaster, Pa. Thomas DiBiagio, the U.S. attorney for Maryland, said Luna. A police report on Luna's slaying mentioned only stab wounds, but the judge who was presiding over his drug case told The Associated Press he suffered multiple stab and gunshot wounds.

He appeared to be the victim of "an execution-style" murder, other sources told ABCNEWS.

Sources said Luna returned to his home around 8 p.m. Wednesday night. Later that night, he received a phone call and left his home sometime after midnight. When he did not return, his wife reported him missing.

‘We Will Find Out Who Did This …’

At an evening news conference in Baltimore, DiBiagio vowed to bring Luna's killer or killers to justice.

"Let there be no doubt that every person in law enforcement is united," he said. "We will find out who did this. We will bring the person or persons responsible for this tragedy to justice."

Attorney General John Ashcroft sent his condolences to Luna's family and vowed a thorough investigation would be conducted.

"On behalf of the entire United States Department of Justice, I express our deepest condolences to Jonathan's family, colleagues and friends," Ashcroft said in a statement. "We share his family's grief and will provide any support and assistance to help them through this difficult time. All appropriate resources will be dedicated to investigating this matter."

Officials pleaded with the public to help them with the investigation into Luna's slaying and urged anyone with information to contact authorities on a tip line at (410) 265-8080.

Plea Deal in Drug Case

Kenneth Ravenell, Smith's attorney, told The Associated Press that both Smith and Poindexter entered guilty pleas today as part of a plea deal.

Smith pleaded guilty to distribution of heroin and use of a handgun in a drug trafficking crime while Poindexter pleaded guilty to three counts of distribution of heroin. Conspiracy charges against the men were dropped, Ravenell said. Both men were behind bars at the time of Luna's death.

Luna had recently prosecuted a number of other suspected drug gangs. He had also prosecuted cases against a Maryland man who videotaped a child as she slept in her home and a man who plotted to burn down a home to force six Mexican men out of a neighborhood. Both cases ended in guilty pleas.

Justice Department officials said the last time they remember a federal prosecutor being killed was in 2001 when Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Wales was gunned down in his home in Seattle. No arrests have been made in that case.

Luna grew up in New York City's Bronx borough, attended Fordham University andthe University of North Carolina Law School. He was an associate of the Washington law firm of Arnold and Porter in 1993 and 1994 before becoming a staff attorney with the Federal Trade Commission's general counsel office. He also worked as an assistant district attorney in Brooklyn, N.Y., before coming to Baltimore.

Luna is survived by a wife and two young children.

ABCNEWS' Pierre Thomas and ABCNEWS affiliate WMAR in Baltimore contributed to this report.