A man wanted for more than a year in connection with a shooting in Springfield Township was arrested Wednesday in Ravenna, U.S. Marshals announced. Stanley Smith, 41, had been on the run since a July 2025 shooting left a victim wounded in the leg, and investigators say he was considered armed and dangerous the entire time.
The U.S. Marshals said Smith was arrested on Wednesday, Nov. 4, after leading a manhunt that began in Summit County and stretched into the following year, according to FOX 8 News. The Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force tracked him down in the 100 block of Spruce Avenue in Ravenna, discovering he had been staying there before moving in to make the arrest.
The case traces back to July 8, 2025, when investigators said Smith shot a victim in the leg in the 1400 block of Albrecht Avenue in Springfield Township and left the scene. The Summit County Sheriff's Office wanted him on charges of felonious assault and having weapons under disability, and warrants were issued for his arrest soon after.
A Manhunt That Kept Expanding
Within a day of the shooting, authorities said they were still combing the area for Smith. The station's report from July 9, 2025, noted that police were still searching for Stanley “Chance” Smith, then listed as 40, in connection with the shooting on Albrecht Avenue, and that the victim had been taken to a hospital. That same week, the search widened well beyond the initial scene, with officials saying the search is now being expanded elsewhere in Summit County, per the same account.
Springfield Township police did not chase Smith alone. They were also working with the U.S. Marshals' Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force on the search from the earliest days of the investigation, the outlet reported. As weeks turned into months, the manhunt for Smith expanded into other parts of the county, and he remained classified as armed and dangerous throughout.
Fugitive of the Week, Reward Offered
Smith's case drew enough attention that he was at one point named U.S. Marshals' Fugitive of the Week, a designation meant to generate tips on hard-to-find suspects. By August 17, 2026, more than a year after the shooting, investigators were still asking the public for help. Reward money is available, according to the release, the Akron Beacon Journal reported at the time, though the specific amount and terms were not detailed.
Offering rewards for information is a familiar tool for the task force. In a separate case, the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force offered a monetary reward for information leading to the capture of another wanted fugitive, Jamel Smith, according to WFMJ.
Marshal Credits Task Force's Persistence
U.S. Marshal Pete Elliott said the task force had continued pursuing Smith for more than a year without letting up. “Our task force officers never stopped pursuing him,” Elliott said, according to FOX 8 News. He added that the arrest demonstrated the task force's tenacity and commitment to pursuing violent criminals.
The arrest closes out a search that began in the middle of 2025 and dragged on through a full year of expanded patrols, public appeals and a reward offer. Smith faced the felonious assault and weapons-under-disability allegations tied to the Albrecht Avenue shooting at the time of his capture.
